A doctor is facing potential disciplinary action after he allegedly prescribed himself the powerful painkiller tramadol while visiting Dunedin. The doctor, whose identity is secret because of an interim suppression order, is back in Dunedin this week for a hearing of the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (HPDT). The second pharmacist also had doubts about the prescription she was presented, concerns which sparked the investigation which eventually resulted in the HPDT hearing. The Medical Council’s Good MedicalPractice publication said doctors could only prescribe drugs for themselves or for someone with whom they had a close personal relationship in exceptional circumstances, she said. The doctor’s lawyer, Matthew McClelland QC, highlighted a recent injury that the doctor had suffered.

Source: Otago Daily Times August 10, 2021 16:52 UTC