CALGARY -- A Calgary pharmacist has been suspended and fined $10,000 following a hearing tribunal that found her guilty of unprofessional conduct.

Shemina Juma was working as a pharmacist with Alberta Health Services at the Alberta Children's Hospital when she accessed the health information of numerous patients without authorization. 

The records she accessed included her own and the offences occurred on multiple occasions over the course of a 20-month period. 

An Alberta College of Pharmacy tribunal found that while Juma had misused her authority, there wasn't anything to suggest that she had disclosed the health information of the patients. 

Juma's one-month suspension ended in February. The tribunal's decision including the potential suspension of her practice permit for up to three months, with the remaining two months held in abeyance pending her completion of an ethics course, on her own dime, within the year.

The pharmacist confirmed to CTV News in May that the course had been completed and the total duration of her suspension will be the one month served as long as no additional privacy concerns surface in the 12 months following the September 2020 decision..

Juma also received a reprimand, an order that she must disclose the tribunal's written decision to any pharmacy employer for a two-year period, prohibition from being a licensee for two years, and a payment of $10,000 towards the costs of the investigation and hearing. 

The rationale for the decision was laid out in a statement put out by the tribunal. 

"She was not a new employee or pharmacist and should have understood that accessing health records without an authorized purpose was not appropriate," read the statement. "This was not an isolated incident of a single lapse in judgment.

"Miss Juma's decision to review the personal information of individuals for purposes unrelated to medical care constitutes a serious violation of privacy. It was a breach of her obligations owed to the public, as well as to the profession, and is conduct that harms the integrity of the pharmacy profession."

Juma admitted that her conduct was unprofessional.

Correction:

The original version of this story indicated the suspension of Juma's practic permit was for three months. Her permit was suspended for a month but the remaining two months continue to be held in abeyance. The two months will be removed as long as no additional privacy concerns surface prior in the year following the September 2020 decision. Juma confirms she has completed the ethics course requirement outlined in the decision.