Doctor suspended for using dead patients' names to get drugs
Dr John Henderson held a senior post with NHS Lanarkshire before being removed
- Published
A doctor who used the names of dead patients to get drugs for himself has been suspended from practising medicine for a year.
Dr John Henderson used various names at 17 pharmacies across Glasgow and Lanarkshire between July 2021 and February 2022 to obtain painkillers.
The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service ruled that his fitness to practice was impaired, and imposed a 12-month ban on his registration.
Henderson, who held a senior post with NHS Lanarkshire, previously admitted fraud in a trial at Hamilton Sheriff Court last year but avoided a jail sentence.
Henderson used the prescriptions to acquire the strong painkiller oxycodone, which he claimed he was using to treat a gall bladder condition.
He filled out the prescriptions using the names of both living and dead patients.
An investigation into the amount of prescriptions being written for the drug revealed links between the paperwork and Henderson.
A search of his home in June 2022 found needles and drugs and he was arrested.
Henderson was ordered in court to pay £883 compensation to the NHS for the scam, and sentenced to a community payback order with a supervision period of nine months.
He was also told to complete an unpaid work programme of 100 hours within 12 months.
The MPTS ruled that the suspension should take effect immediately "to protect public confidence in the medical profession".
NHS Lanarkshire previously stated it had taken immediate action against Henderson when his crimes came to light.
He is understood to now be living in England.