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A locum GP pharmacist who was found to have plagiarised elements of her course submissions from another student has received a warning from the General Pharmaceutical Council after demonstrating she had “fully remediated her actions” and shown an “outstanding level of insight”. 

While completing the Primary Care Pharmacy Education Pathway (PCPEP) with the Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education (CPPE) in 2023, Anam Azam was found to have plagiarised some of her assessments from the work of another learner, the GPhC’s fitness to practise committee concluded this week following a hearing that was initiated in August 2025.  

She was also found to have misled her CPPE course supervisor that she had worked towards the clinical examination and procedural skills assessment record (CEPSAR) when in fact she had not been directly supervised by or had case study discussions with her clinical advisor, who is a doctor at a practice where Ms Azam worked regularly at the time.  She had instead shadowed a doctor at a different practice. 

It was found that Ms Azam had knowingly plagiarised the submissions on topics such as asthma medication reviews and methotrexate monitoring. 

However, in considering the question of whether she had acted dishonestly the committee was not satisfied that she had knowingly submitted plagiarised work; she contended that this was done in error and that she had meant to submit a different set of materials, which she evidenced to her colleagues shortly after the first materials were submitted. 

Testimonials from employers highlighted her integrity and professionalism in her work, and the committee heard that since the events of 2023 she has acted to ensure they will not be repeated. 

The FtP committee stated: “Although dishonesty is generally difficult to remediate, we consider that in this case Ms Azam’s dishonesty was capable of remediation and has indeed now been fully remediated.”  

“We find that the risk of repetition is extremely low and she does not present an actual or potential risk to patients or the public,” said the committee, adding that the behaviour was not “sufficiently serious to bring the profession of pharmacy into disrepute”.  

She “has shown a high level of insight” and carried out extensive reflection and CPD since the issue came to light, said the committee, adding that she has expressed remorse for her misconduct and now has a support network in place should there be a recurrence of pressures in her life or at work.  

The committee decided a warning would be sufficient, commenting that imposing even a short suspension order “would be unnecessarily damaging and disruptive”. 

Related: Pharmacist struck off after falsifying CPPE documentation