A young doctor's future is in doubt after she was charged with forging prescriptions for weight-loss pills to keep her awake while working long hours.
The doctor appeared in Auckland District Court this week to face fraud charges over four faked prescriptions for the drugs over an 18-month period until January this year.
Her defence lawyer Jo Wickliffe argued she should be discharged without conviction and her name kept secret because of the damage it would do to her promising career, the
Weekend Herald reported.
The court heard the doctor worked in a busy emergency department and forged prescriptions to obtain sibutramine hydrochloride, also known as Reductil, after colleagues told her they were using the substance to help stay awake.
Ms Wickliffe said the doctor was not a drug addict and the alleged offending had happened at a time of great stress before an upcoming rotation working long hours.
She told the court the ambitious doctor was afraid of killing someone by missing something.
She said the doctor was worried a conviction would affect her ability to get jobs in the future.
She asked Judge David Wilson QC to discharge the doctor without conviction because the consequences of her alleged crime were far outweighed by the gravity of offending. However, Judge Wilson rejected the request and said the alleged offending was premeditated and "hit at the heart of the responsibilities of a doctor".
Spokesman George Symmes said the Medical Council took a serious view on fraud, but he emphasised the council process was rehabilitative, not punitive.
"We want to help doctors get back to work," he said.
The case has been adjourned to allow the doctor to decide how to plead.
She has been granted interim name suppression.
NZPA