Nurse prescriber aroused pharmacist’s suspicions after trying to obtain a large quantity of testosterone replacement drug
The nursing regulator’s fitness to practise panel said prescriber Aaron Carnahan had abused his position of trust Picture: Barney Newman
A nurse was struck off after illegally attempting to obtain a large quantity of a testosterone replacement drug to use at a sports nutrition clinic.
Prescriber Aaron Carnahan ordered 50 times the usual maximum monthly dosage of Sustanon (testosterone isocaproate) for one person, without the required Home Office licence, in February 2023.
Hormone replacement prescription not intended for one individual
A Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) fitness to practise (FtP) hearing was told Mr Carnahan wrote a private prescription for 100 ampoules (250mg) of Sustanon for a patient, exceeding recommended guidelines, in a bid to obtain it from a pharmacy.
The lead pharmacist told the FtP panel the usual maximum dose is 1ml to be injected every two weeks. She discovered the prescription was not for a private patient, but for sports nutrition company Strom Sports, where Mr Carnahan worked at the time. The pharmacist flagged the prescription to NHS England, which made a referral to the NMC.
Neither nurse nor his fitness industry employer were licensed to hold stocks of testosterone drug
Neither Mr Carnahan nor Strom Sports had the required Home Office licence to hold the stock, the FtP report states. And Mr Carnahan was found to have lied about having the Care Quality Commission (CQC) registration required to provide the phlebotomy treatment he offered through Strom Sports.
The nurse admitted using his CQC registration number, which had expired in August 2018, on the prescription. He said he did this to find out if a CQC identifier was needed to prescribe controlled drugs. The FtP panel said he did this to give the prescription credibility.
Mr Carnahan subsequently reapplied for CQC registration. The panel report said this suggested he was concerned about whether he was allowed to provide the treatment.
Prescription was a ‘dummy’ so I could seek advice, nurse told NMC fitness to practise panel
Mr Carnahan told the FtP panel he had wanted to start offering a private testosterone service based at Strom Sports and would not undertake any treatments until his registration was granted by the CQC. He said he created a ‘dummy prescription’ to get advice on its format and did not intend for the drugs to be dispensed.
A senior pharmacist told Mr Carnahan in an email that a test prescription would be ‘extremely dangerous’ because the pharmacy was busy and would have dispensed the drugs had the prescription not been intercepted.
The FtP panel considered Mr Carnahan’s good character and unblemished 30-year career, also that no harm had been caused and there had been no financial gain. But it ruled the nurse had shown insufficient insight into his actions, abused his position of trust as a nurse and had put customers at potential risk.
He was struck off and given an 18-month interim order, with 28 days to appeal.
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