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Conduct, ethics and performance
The GPhC has powers under the draft Pharmacy Order 2009 to set standards relating to the conduct, ethics and performance expected of registrants. It also has powers to draw up rules about the evidence that the GPhC will require regarding a person's fitness to practise.
Conduct, ethics and performance will set out the overarching standards that registered pharmacists and pharmacy technicians will be required to meet. These standards will play an important role in helping to ensure that registrants practise safely and effectively. They will also be used to inform decisions about whether registrants are fit to practise.
The standards of conduct, ethics and performance will apply to all pharmacists and pharmacy technicians registered with the GPhC, and will need to be relevant to all areas of practice (whether or not the registrant is involved in direct patient care). They will also need to be flexible enough to encompass all aspects of the rapidly changing pharmacy profession.
It is essential that the standards set out clear, patient-focused, measurable requirements, but they cannot provide a set of rules covering every circumstance. Registrants will need to apply the standards to all that they do, and to exercise their professional judgement in accordance with the standards. They must also be prepared to justify the actions they take, when necessary.