Iowa pharmacists sanctioned for medication errors, narcotic theft

Greenville Pharmacy at 2705 Correctionville Road in Sioux City, Iowa. (Photo via Google Earth)

The Iowa Board of Pharmacy has sanctioned several pharmacists for regulatory violations, including errors that allegedly contributed to injuries or possible death.

In one case, the board alleges that on Oct. 4, 2023, pharmacist Brice Buryanek of Hawarden incorrectly filled a patient’s prescription for a drug. The patient began taking the medication one week later, and on Oct. 25, 2023, was taken to the emergency department of a hospital and admitted with what the board calls “a life-threatening condition resulting from this medication error.”

The board charged Buryanek with dispensing an incorrect prescription. Buryanek then agreed to settle the case with a $1,000 civil penalty. As part of the settlement, Buryanek will also be required to complete educational training on medication errors, and his license will be placed on probation for two years.

The board has not publicly disclosed the name of the pharmacy where Buryanek worked. However, board records indicate a medication error of the same type, on the same day, took place at Greenville Pharmacy in Sioux City.

The board recently imposed a $2,500 civil penalty against Greenville Pharmacy as a result of that error. The pharmacy had previously been sanctioned in 2002 and 2005.

Other Iowa pharmacists recently sanctioned by the board include:

— Troy Adolfson of Ankeny, who is an Iowa-licensed physician who formerly practiced radiation oncology in Ottumwa. According to the board, Adolfson was issued a Controlled Substances Act registration in 2017. He later pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of a controlled substance, a felony, after being accused of writing prescriptions for 1,400 oxycodone pills, which were filled by a coworker and others who then returned the drugs to Adolfson in exchange for $50 and some of the oxycodone tablets. Adolfson was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.

According to the pharmacy board, Adolfson has been diagnosed with a substance abuse disorder and successfully completed treatment under the supervision of the Iowa Physician Health Program, which has supported his return to the practice of medicine. The pharmacy board has ordered that Adolfson’s Controlled Substances Act registration be reactivated with restrictions. According to the board, he will be prohibited “from prescribing, administering or dispensing controlled substances for the treatment of chronic pain,” but that restriction will not prohibit him from “prescribing, administering or dispensing controlled substances for the treatment of pain in acute care settings,” such as hospitals.

— Shauna Richardson of Newton, who has been charged by the board with dispensing an incorrect prescription in the form of a morphine concentrate. The error allegedly led to a “substantial overdose and possibly early death,” according to the board. The board has imposed a $2,000 civil penalty against Richardson and is requiring her to undergo training on medication errors.

Although the board does not identify Richardson’s employer, the date and circumstances of the error correspond to actions the board says occurred at the Hy-Vee Pharmacy at 1501 First Ave. East in Newton. The board imposed a $5,000 civil penalty against the pharmacy for that error, and ordered that the entire professional staff at the pharmacy undergo training on medication errors and patient safety.

— Brittany Daly, a pharmacy technician who was charged by the board with habitual intoxication based upon an alleged inability to practice with reasonable skill and safety due to the excessive use of alcohol. The board alleged that on Sept. 20, 2023, Daly left the pharmacy where she worked before her shift had ended and was later found to be intoxicated. Daly agreed to surrender her license.

— Kellie Ann Holub of Walford, who was employed as a pharmacy technician by the Hy-Vee store at 5050 Edgewood Road NE, Cedar Rapids. Holub was charged with diverting prescription drugs for her personal use or for distribution to others. According to the board, the store increased video surveillance of the pharmacy after narcotics were determined to be missing in September, October, November and December of 2023. In early January 2024, video surveillance allegedly captured Holub stealing tablets of Oxycontin. Holub has agreed to surrender her license. Court records indicate that in March, Holub pleaded guilty to a criminal charge of unlawful possession of a prescription drug and was granted a deferred judgment.

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