ML pharmacy assistant’s credentials suspended
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 8 months AGO
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | August 5, 2021 1:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake pharmacy assistant’s credentials were suspended indefinitely by the Washington State Department of Health for allegedly taking controlled substances from her employer for her own use.
Sarah Hicks allegedly told her employer she took the drugs for her use in 2020. She worked at Laketown Pharmacy on South Pioneer Way during that time, according to Herald archives.
Hicks’ credentials expired, but she is eligible to renew them, according to a Department of Health order filed June 9. Under the order her eligibility has been suspended indefinitely, or until she meets conditions imposed through the DOH.
“Between approximately March 2020 through about June 2020, while working as a pharmacy assistant at a retail pharmacy in Moses Lake, Respondent (Hicks) diverted controlled substances by removing the pills from patient pill bottles in the will call area.” according to the order.
“On or about June 23, 2020, Respondent (Hicks) admitted to her employer that she diverted hydrocodone, oxycodone, and tramadol pills for her personal use. Respondent diverted approximately 246 pills of controlled substances,” according to the order.
If she wants to be eligible for reinstatement, Hicks is required to go through a substance abuse evaluation and, if recommended, enter a substance abuse treatment program for pharmacy employees. She must complete enrollment in the program, called the Washington Recovery Assistance Program for Pharmacy (WRAPP), within 60 days of the order.
“Respondent may be enrolled in WRAPP anywhere from one to five years, or longer, depending on her compliance with WRAPP conditions,” according to the order.
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