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No images? Click here  Victorian Pharmacy Authority Circular No. 38 - Aug 2025 In this Circular
Chair's message Welcome to VPA’s August circular. I’d like to extend a warm welcome to Adam Stormont who was appointed as a pharmacist member of the VPA from 1 July 2025. We thank Divesh Sanghvi, our outgoing pharmacist member for his contributions to the VPA. This circular includes an update on the VPA team and also information on how long to retain prescriptions which is a query that the VPA often receives. We have seen recent cases of non-compliance with ownership structures involving companies and emphasise that shares in a company licensee must only be held by registered pharmacists. A case study is provided to illustrate this requirement as well as a company licensee’s obligation to inform the VPA of changes to its shareholding, directorship and office bearers. I encourage licensees to visit the VPA website to access relevant notification and application forms. VPA officers can be contacted to provide information and clarification. David McConville Chair Appointments to the VPAWelcome Adam Stormont Adam Stormont was appointed by the Governor in Council as a pharmacist member of the VPA for a three-year term from 1 July 2025 until 30 June 2028. Adam is a registered pharmacist with more than 20 years’ experience across the public, private, and not-for-profit healthcare sectors. He is currently a senior executive in the Victorian health sector, where he leads complex programs focused on community-based care, infrastructure development, and system transformation. He has held senior leadership roles in hospital operations, statewide strategy, service planning, and health system reform. His previous roles include Divisional Manager of Specialist Clinics at Austin Health, General Manager (Victoria) at the Heart Foundation, and Director of Pharmacy. Adam has also served in statewide project leadership roles at Western Health and Monash Health. Reappointments Pharmacist member Regina Cowie and lawyer member Elizabeth Kennedy were both reappointed for another three-year term from 1 July 2025 until 30 June 2028. Farewell Divesh Sanghvi Divesh Sanghvi completed his 3-year term as a pharmacist member of the VPA on 30 June 2025. Divesh has been a member of the VPA since April 2020. We thank Divesh for his passion and contributions to the VPA and wish him the best with his future pursuits. VPA staff updateWe welcome back Tran To from leave to her role as Project and Engagement Officer. Maggie Bassily will continue in her role as Project and Engagement Officer on a permanent basis. Both Tran and Maggie bring significant experience in stakeholder engagement and project management and will continue to build on the recent engagement activities conducted by VPA. We also welcome Jane Davison to the VPA team. Jane is the new VPA Licensing and Registration Officer and has a background in regulation, licensing and compliance. Special focus Shares in a company licensee cannot be held by a company When a pharmacy business is owned by a company, the shares in that company, along with the beneficial and legal interest in those shares, must be held by registered pharmacists [section 5(1)(b) of the Pharmacy Regulation Act 2010 (Act)]. “Registered pharmacist” is defined in the Act as a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practice in the pharmacy profession (other than as a student). As such, shares in the company licensee cannot be held by a company (even if that company is a company of registered A company licensee is no longer eligible to hold a licence to carry on a business if shares are issued to another company since the requirements of section 5 of the Act are not met. Company licensees are also required to notify the VPA within 14 days of a change to the shareholding, the directorship and the office bearers of the company (section 27 of the Act). A contravention of this requirement is an offence subject to a penalty of 10 penalty units. The notification forms are available on the VPA website (VPA37a Notification of Fictional case study ABC Pharmacy Pty Ltd is a company licensee with directors and shareholders Samuel Le and Fiona Lockwood, who are both registered pharmacists. ABC Pharmacy Pty Ltd is the owner of ABC Pharmacy located in Victoria since 1 July 2022. On 1 July 2025, Samuel transfers his shares in ABC Pharmacy Pty Ltd to Samuel Le Pty Ltd which has sole The VPA becomes aware of the change in the shareholding of the company licensee on 21 July 2025 through an alert from the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC). Non-compliance with the Act:
The Authority may convene a Panel to hear the matter and/or revoke the licence held by ABC Pharmacy Pty Ltd. The Authority may also commence a proceeding against the licensee under section 27 of the Act. For Information How long must prescriptions be kept? Schedule 8 prescriptions Paper-based S8 poison prescriptions are to be kept for three years from the date of supply and produced on demand to an authorised officer [DPCS Regulations 2017, reg. 66]. For electronic prescriptions, dispensing software must include the functionality to produce required S8 poison prescriptions, on demand, without the pharmacist needing to seek to obtain a copy of a prescription from a third party. [Medicines and Poisons Regulation guidance document Dispensing medicines]. All other S8 transaction records (e.g. Drug of Dependence book, transfer between premises, destruction) must also be kept in a readily retrievable form for 3 years from the date of transaction and produced on demand to an authorised officer [DPCS Regulations 2017, reg 109]. Refer also to the VPA document Managing Schedule 8 poisons – a reference guide for pharmacists. PBS prescriptions Paper-based and electronic PBS prescriptions must be kept for at least two years from the date of supply. This includes order forms for prescriber bag supplies. Reference:
Queries regarding PBS prescriptions can be directed All prescription records Prescription records are to be retained for 3 years. This refers to the usual electronic records, suitably backed up, and applies to all dispensing, irrespective of poisons schedule (if any) [Pharmacy Regulation Act 2010, s. 32 (4)]. The DPCS Regulations 2017, reg 109(4) impose the same retention time in the case of records for S4, S8 and S9 poisons. Private (non-PBS/RPBS) Paper-based prescription duplicates which are neither claimable nor S8 do not need to be retained by the pharmacy. Recent panel hearing summaryThe VPA conducted thirteen panel hearings between April and July 2025 into allegations that licensees failed to meet their responsibilities to comply with the Act and VPA Standards. Panel hearings are convened for serious potential breaches of the Act and the VPA Standards. Ten hearings resulted in reprimands and three hearings resulted in the licensees being cautioned. Six of the hearings also resulted in a condition being imposed requiring a reinspection at the licensees’ cost. The VPA self-audit form is available on the VPA website to assist licensees and employee pharmacists to audit their compliance with key requirements of the Act, VPA Standards and good pharmacy practice. Did you Know? A reminder about privacy The Pharmacy Regulation Act 2010 (refer Schedule to the Act, clause 9(h)) requires licensees to have adequate arrangements in place to ensure the identity of a medicine being supplied or dispensed cannot be known by another client of the pharmacy or pharmacy department. When clients carry open baskets of dispensed medicines to cash registers, the nature and identity of the medicines can be known to other clients. Other inadvertent disclosures may occur when prescriptions are sorted at the front counter in clear view of the public or in cases where medications awaiting collection are not stored out of public view. Pharmacists are reminded that this requirement of the Act applies to all dispensed medicines. The VPA does not specify a particular method to meet this requirement. Licensees are responsible for implementing suitable procedures to ensure the requirement is met. Refer also to guideline G2.4.10 Privacy Requirements under the Schedule to the Act of the VPA Guidelines. ResourcesSupporting key learnings from recent inspections and areas of high risk, licensees and pharmacists may wish to refer to the following resources. Resources are not limited to the list below and pharmacists are encouraged to review other relevant resources as required. VPA resources
S8 management
Vaccination
Other resources
Members of the Victorian Pharmacy AuthorityMr David McConville, Chair (Pharmacist member) VPA StaffRegistrar: Mr Aaron Bawden The VPA Circular is a document issued by the Victoria Pharmacy Authority (VPA) in Australia. It provides important information and updates to pharmacists and pharmacy stakeholders. You can review this circular and previous circulars on the VPA website here.   |
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