3 pharmacists linked to Thunder Bay pharmacy now face misconduct allegations by Ontario regulator
One pharmacist also faces allegations of taking or misappropriating drugs from the shop on Victoria Avenue.
Fort William Medical Pharmacy and two pharmacists were already under the Ontario College of Pharmacists' (OCP) scrutiny for allegations of misconduct that allegedly occurred between roughly January 2023 and May 2023.
Jaspreet Sahota and Chi (Hao) Luu are facing professional misconduct hearings related to those allegations referred to the college in 2024. They include breaking federal narcotic law and dispensing prescriptions without valid authorization, according to the hearing info on the OCP public registry.
If you have any more information related this story, contact Michelle Allan at michelle.allan@cbc.ca
The OCP recently made new allegations against Sahota, Luu and a third pharmacist, Alamgir (Alam) Hallan. The latest allegations, referred to the college on March 24, accuse each of the three pharmacists of falsifying records and billing for medication reviews that were never conducted or done improperly, according to the OCP.
CBC News attempted to reach Sahota by email and phone but did not receive a response by time of publication.
When reached by CBC via phone, Luu declined to comment.
"I acknowledge the allegations under review by the Ontario College of Pharmacists. My view is that they are unfounded and I will be disputing them," said Hallan in an emailed response. He said he would not provide further comment, citing the ongoing OCP proceedings.
"[Hallan] falsified (or permitted, consented to or approved, expressly or by implication, the falsification of) records relating to MedsCheck services," reads the summary of allegations.
"[He] submitted (or permitted, consented to, or approved, expressly or by implication, the submission of) claims for payment to the Ontario Drug Benefit Program for MedsCheck services that were never conducted and/or were non-compliant with the requirements set forth by the Ministry of Health," alleges the OCP.
Disciplinary hearings in coming weeks
MedsCheck, also known as medication reviews, is a government program that reimburses pharmacies in Ontario for reviewing a patient's medications to ensure they're being taken correctly.
WATCH | Why Ontario's MedsCheck program is getting a closer look:
The OCP also alleges Sahota "misappropriated and/or took drugs without authorization from the pharmacy, including but not limited to controlled drugs and substances," said the website.
The alleged misconduct by Sahota, Luu and Hallan is said to have happened roughly between October 2021 and May 2023, said the OCP.
Sahota is scheduled to face disciplinary hearings for the previous allegations of professional and proprietary misconduct on April 22. Luu's hearing is scheduled for May 5. Hallan's hearing and the subsequent hearings in relation to Sahota and Luu's additional alleged misconduct have yet to be scheduled.
The corporation that owns the pharmacy, Fort William Medical Pharmacy Inc., is listed as "In Receivership" on the OCP website. The pharmacy was listed as "entitled to operate" as of Tuesday.
The OCP profiles for Luu and Hallan stated they can provide patient care with no restrictions. Neither has listed Fort William Medical Pharmacy as a current workplace.
Sahota's profile said he was able to provide care with conditions. "Concerns" listed by the OCP included an active, indefinite interim order including monitoring requirements was imposed on his practice April 1. His profile listed Fort William Medical Pharmacy as a workplace as of Tuesday.
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02-07-2025
- Yahoo
The 10 Biggest Costco Scandals Of All Time
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Read more: 6 Frozen Costco Foods To Buy And 7 To Skip Costco came under fire in 2015 when a California woman sued the warehouse club for its shrimps' connection to slave labor. Costco sourced farmed prawns in Thailand that were raised on a diet of low-grade fish, which the lawsuit alleged was harvested with slave labor. Under California state laws, the lawsuit claimed that Costco had a duty to be transparent about the human rights violations in its supply chain. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2016 when it was revealed that the woman who brought the suit against Costco didn't actually purchase any of the shrimp impacted by forced, unpaid labor. After all, the warehouse club has data on all of its members. A new plaintiff was brought on and the lawsuit continued, but it was dismissed again in 2017. This time, a federal judge decided the plaintiffs weren't able to prove that it was Costco's responsibility to acknowledge the slave labor in its supply chain on the shrimps' packaging. 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Fire chief took own life after harassment
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Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Yahoo
Fire chief took own life amid probe into claims he lied on his CV, inquest hears
A chief fire officer who was at the centre of a probe into allegations he had lied about his qualifications and faced scrutiny from the media took his own life because he just 'couldn't take it anymore' after months of alleged harassment, his partner has told an inquest. Wayne Brown, 54, chief fire officer at West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS), was found at his flat in Birmingham by police on the morning of January 24 last year after colleagues alerted them that he had failed to turn up for work, Birmingham Coroners' Court was told. Mr Brown, the UK's first black fire chief, had been under pressure because of a 'barrage' of harassment and complaints about his character in the form of emails, Freedom of Information requests and letters to his workplace as well as social media posts making allegations about him, and had left a note for police saying the last 18 months of his life had been 'absolutely awful' and 'I can't do this anymore'. 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She said: 'He just couldn't take it anymore. I said 'Wayne, you need to speak to someone', but he didn't like to show his weaknesses. 'He was the first person to support others and tell them to seek help, but he felt he needed to be strong for everyone else. 'On the Tuesday… I did think to ask him, 'you're not going to do anything silly are you?' but I put that thought immediately out of my head because I thought he would never do that.' Ms White said her partner did say he felt supported by the fire service, although Mr Sahota said Mr Brown was a 'private and stoic' man who did not seek the support from occupational health colleagues that he was urged to take during their meetings. On one occasion days before he died, the fire chief, who took up the role permanently in April 2023, did tell Mr Sahota that he was feeling under pressure, was exhausted, struggling to sleep and had 'racing thoughts'. Mr Sahota told the inquest: 'My view at the time was that he was saying he was okay. I urged him to reach out to occupational health. 'I had to be careful with Wayne… I didn't want to annoy him, it was quite clear he was private and he was the most senior person in the organisation and I didn't want to be disrespectful of that because it would affect my relationship with him going forward.' Deputy chief fire officer Joanne Bowcock said in a statement read out at the inquest that she recognised Mr Brown was under pressure due to the alleged harassment and the media interest, but that she never considered he would take his own life. She said he appeared to be coping well but when speaking to him on January 18 after the email about the MBA had been received, told her he had 'the worst two weeks of his life' and feared he would be suspended. Detective Chief Inspector Jonathan Kiteley, who was the West Midlands Police officer investigating the alleged harassment, said a man was charged with harassing the fire chief in July 2023 and while there had been some early court appearances, Mr Brown had expressed 'frustration' to DCI Kiteley that a court date had been pushed back. He said: 'I had no idea he would go on to take his own life but I could tell the constant barrage of contact was getting to him. 'I appreciated it was difficult for him to go on with his day job because of other pressures.' The charges against the man accused of harassment were dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service after Mr Brown's death. Senior coroner Louise Hunt, who presided over the inquest, said Mr Brown had died as a result of suicide and indicated she would be writing a Prevention of Future Deaths report to WMFS to raise concerns. She said the fire service did not undertake any investigation following Mr Brown's death so lessons could be learned and was concerned that there was no policy requiring them to do so. Mrs Hunt was also concerned that there appeared to be no mechanism for recording concerns raised about the welfare of staff during a fact-finding or formal investigation, and that there was no provision in the service's health and wellbeing or mental health policy for employees as senior as Mr Brown was. In a tribute, Mr Brown's son Kai said he was 'loved and respected', had many friends and was their 'shining star'. He said: 'We will be forever proud of him and he leaves a void in our lives which will never be filled.'
