A patient or prescriber has complained about a substitution or change made at the counter
Your controlled or semi-controlled medicine register has a discrepancy under review
An insurer or your employer has queried claims or product codes submitted by your pharmacy
Written for UAE licensing·Updated 2 November 2026
What you will learn
Explain how pharmacy is now regulated in the UAE, including the 2024 federal medical products law and the Emirates Drug Establishment it created.
Use the pharmacist's legal duties and prohibitions to decide what to do in everyday pharmacy situations.
Explain what the pharmacist in charge is answerable for, and hand tasks to support staff safely.
Check prescriptions for validity, respond lawfully to requests for supply without a prescription, and manage substitution and prescribing errors.
Supply narcotic, psychotropic and other restricted medicines only on a lawful basis and keep the registers your authority requires.
Counsel patients privately and respectfully, and know when the law requires you to share information.
Resist sales targets, supplier incentives and claim practices that would compromise patient care or honesty.
Report errors and adverse reactions promptly, act on recalls, and explain mistakes openly to the patients affected.
Outline what follows a complaint against a pharmacist, including liability review, discipline and the time limits for challenging a decision.
Write a reflection that shows insight and a credible plan for change.
Who this course is for
Pharmacists, pharmacists in charge, clinical and hospital pharmacists, and assistant pharmacists and technicians licensed in any emirate, including those responding to a dispensing error or inspection finding.
Structured learning and a written reflection to show insight after a complaint, an investigation or a licensing authority inquiry.
Routine CPD
Focused learning on a core standard of practice, with a certificate and reflection for your portfolio.
About this course
Pharmacy law in the UAE changed substantially when a new federal decree-law on medical products, pharmacists and pharmaceutical establishments, Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024, came into force at the start of 2025 and set up a new federal regulator for medicines. This course explains what that law, the narcotics law, the medical liability law and the standards of MOHAP, the DHA and the DOH now expect of a pharmacist, and applies them to the decisions made at the counter, in the dispensary and on the ward.
It is written for community, hospital and clinical pharmacists, pharmacists in charge, and assistant pharmacists and technicians across the emirates. If a dispensing error has been reported, a patient has complained, an inspection has raised questions about controlled medicines or supply without a prescription, or your licensing authority has written to you, the course helps you work out which duty is in question and show, through a structured reflection and a plan for change, that you understand it and have acted on it.
Sections follow the path of a prescription: your legal duties and the people you supervise, checking and substituting, restricted medicines, counselling and privacy, sales pressure, promotion and insurance, and medicines safety, including errors, pharmacovigilance and recalls. Cases are set in chain, standalone and hospital pharmacies, and the course ends with a 20-question scenario assessment and your reflective account.
How this course helps after a concern
Concerns about pharmacists in the UAE frequently come from a single transaction: a prescription changed to fit an insurer's list without asking the prescriber, a controlled medicine register that does not balance, a prescription-only medicine handed over without a prescription or a dispensing error that was not disclosed. When your employer, an insurer or the DHA, DOH or MOHAP looks into it, this course helps you set the event against the duties and prohibitions in Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024 and explain what you should have done and now do.
The certificate records the course title, 3 hours (estimated) and the date of completion, giving you dated evidence to attach to a written account or a remediation plan agreed with your pharmacist in charge. The reflective account lets you describe the transaction, the duty involved and the concrete change, for instance a prescriber call log or a second check on every controlled entry. For routine CPD, your licensing authority decides how any learning counts towards your CPD or a requirement it has set.
What you will have at the end
A certificate of completion showing the course title, 3 hours (estimated) and your completion date
A clear line between changes you may make alone and changes that need the prescriber's agreement
A controlled medicine checklist for registers, tracking platforms and warning signs of misuse
A dispensing error routine covering patient safety, disclosure, reporting and team learning
A reflective account linking one real transaction to the Article 73 and 75 duties and your changes
A scenario from UAE practice
A switched formulation at a Sharjah pharmacy
Consider a pharmacist in a Sharjah community pharmacy who receives a prescription for a modified-release blood pressure tablet. The insurer's list covers only the immediate-release version, so to avoid a co-payment the pharmacist dispenses that product instead, at the same total daily dose given once a day. The prescriber is not contacted and the label carries the original directions.
The patient, an older man who lives with his son, becomes dizzy and falls at home within the week. His family finds the change on the box and complains to the pharmacy and the licensing authority. The pharmacist believed the switch was a routine substitution, but the dispensing record shows no clinical check of the formulation and no note of a conversation with anyone.
Section 3 sets out the general rule that a prescription is not changed without the prescriber and how to handle insurer preferences honestly. Section 7 covers disclosure and reporting once harm is found, and Section 8 explains the routes a complaint can take. A reflection could show a prescriber contact log, a formulation check and how the team was briefed.
Illustrative example, not a real case.
Is this course right for you?
A patient or prescriber has complained about a substitution or change made at the counter
Your controlled or semi-controlled medicine register has a discrepancy under review
An insurer or your employer has queried claims or product codes submitted by your pharmacy
A dispensing error has reached a patient and you need to show disclosure and learning
You are the pharmacist in charge and want the FDL 38/2024 duties for you and your team clear
You want pharmacy-specific ethics learning to plan into your licence renewal
Course details
Learning time
3 hours (estimated study time, including section knowledge checks, reflection and the final assessment)
Standards covered
Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024 on medical products, pharmacists and pharmaceutical establishments; Federal Decree-Law No. 30 of 2021 on narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances; Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 and Cabinet Resolution No. 40 of 2019; Federal Law No. 2 of 2019 on ICT in health fields; DHA Standards for Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct (2025); DHA and DOH pharmacy and controlled medicines standards; UAE Patient's Rights and Responsibilities Charter
Format
Online and self-paced on any device, with UAE case studies, a knowledge check after each section and reflection prompts; 12 months' access
Assessment
20 scenario-based questions, 80% to pass (16 of 20)
Outcome
Fitness To Practice certificate of completion showing the course title, CPD hours and date, plus a structured reflective account for your portfolio
1The pharmacist's ethical role under UAE law3 lessons
How ethics protects patients at the point of supply
Federal Decree-Law 38/2024 and the wider pharmacy legislation
Ethics codes, continuing education and honest licensing
2Legal obligations and responsibilities within the pharmacy2 lessons
What Federal Decree-Law 38/2024 requires and forbids pharmacists to do
Responsible pharmacists, task delegation and clinical roles
3Checking, dispensing and altering prescriptions2 lessons
What makes a prescription valid and which medicines need one
Generic substitution, amendments and catching prescriber errors
4Narcotics and other restricted medicines2 lessons
Federal narcotics law and emirate rules for restricted drugs
Spotting misuse and diversion while caring for patients in need
5Patient advice, respect and privacy at the counter2 lessons
Advising patients, gaining agreement and treating everyone with respect
Protecting patient information in a busy pharmacy
6Business targets, competing interests and truthful marketing3 lessons
Sales targets, supplier incentives and staying patient-focused
Promoting medicines and pharmacy services online and in store
Accurate insurance claims when dispensing
7Safe medicines: mistakes, openness, reporting and recalls2 lessons
Being open about dispensing mistakes and reporting them
Adverse reaction reporting, product recalls, shortages and fakes
8Complaints against pharmacists and the path to improvement2 lessons
Liability and disciplinary processes for pharmacy concerns
Owning what happened, showing understanding and putting things right
9Core messages1 lesson
Core messages for pharmacy practice
10Legislation, standards and further reading1 lesson
Legislation, standards and further reading
11Reflecting on pharmacy practice1 lesson
Writing up your reflection
Section by section
The pharmacist's ethical role under UAE lawExplains the pharmacist's position as clinician, gatekeeper and retailer, the layered framework built around Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024 and the new federal medicines regulator, and the codes, CPD and licensing integrity expected of every pharmacist.
Legal obligations and responsibilities within the pharmacyWorks through the personal duties in Article 73 and the prohibited acts in Article 75, then the responsibilities of the pharmacist in charge, supervising and delegating to the team and the growing clinical pharmacy role in hospital wards and clinics.
Checking, dispensing and altering prescriptionsCovers what a valid prescription contains, medicine classes and requests for supply without a prescription, then the line between changes a pharmacist may make alone and those needing the prescriber, including substitution, prescribing errors and off-label use.
Narcotics and other restricted medicinesSets out how the narcotics law, FDL 38/2024, electronic tracking and Abu Dhabi and Dubai standards govern each step to the register, why lapses carry criminal risk, and how to respond to warning signs of misuse compassionately, including when the concern is a colleague.
Patient advice, respect and privacy at the counterCovers the patient's right to information, consent to pharmacy services and the right to decline, respectful counselling across languages, and confidentiality at a crowded counter, including shared records on NABIDH, Malaffi and Riayati and questions from relatives or sponsors.
Business targets, competing interests and truthful marketingExamines where sales targets, add-on selling and supplier incentives cross into compromised judgement, the prior permit and content rules for medicine advertising and pharmacists' social media, and why altering codes to make an insurance claim work is serious misconduct.
Safe medicines: mistakes, openness, reporting and recallsExplains reporting and candour after dispensing errors and near misses, adverse reaction reporting duties to the Emirates Drug Establishment, and how to handle recalls, withdrawals, shortages and suspected counterfeit products safely.
Complaints against pharmacists and the path to improvementDescribes the parallel medical liability and disciplinary routes a pharmacist may face, how to respond to a complaint or notice with honesty, and what insight and remediation mean in practice after an event such as a controlled-drug lapse.
Core messagesBrings the course together as ten things to take back to your pharmacy, from knowing the new law and checking every prescription to disclosing errors and keeping commerce separate from judgement.
Legislation, standards and further readingLists the federal decree-laws, MOHAP and national portals, DHA, DOH and Sharjah sources behind the course, with a reminder to check current versions and that the Arabic text prevails where translations differ.
Reflecting on pharmacy practiceProvides prompts for a reflection on one situation from your own pharmacy practice, sets out what a strong reflection contains and includes a worked example you can model yours on.
Assessment and certificate
Final assessment
20scenario-based questions
Pass mark 80%: 16 correct out of 20
Knowledge checks in each section as you go
Tests whether you can apply the standards, not recall a page
Not passed yet? Review the sections and retake it
Certificate of completion
A certificate of completion for your learning portfolio.
Your name, the course title and the estimated learning time (record the time you actually spend)
Completion date and a unique certificate ID that can be verified
Ready to download as a PDF as soon as you complete the course
Fitness To Practice
Certificate of Completion
This certifies that
Your Name
has successfully completed
Ethics and Professional Conduct for Pharmacists
Fitness To PracticeCompleted12 Oct 2026
3hours (estimated)
Certificate IDFTS-7Q4K-2M9X
Digitally signed & stamped on issue
Continuing professional development record — United Arab Emirates
Your reflective account
The course includes a structured reflective account template: guided prompts to record what you learned, how you will apply it and how the change will show in your practice. It gives you written evidence of insight after a concern, and a ready record for your CPD portfolio.
Write it in your own words and leave out anything that could identify a patient, a colleague or a case. If you have an open complaint or case, talk to your adviser before reflecting on it in writing.
Questions about this course
What changed for pharmacists under Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024?
It brought medical products, pharmacists and pharmaceutical establishments under a single federal law, in force since early 2025, and created the Emirates Drug Establishment. Section 1 explains the new framework, and Section 2 the duties and prohibitions it places on pharmacists and on the pharmacist in charge.
Does the course cover controlled and semi-controlled medicines?
Yes. Section 4 covers the legal rules under the narcotics law, Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024 and emirate standards, and the ethical side: spotting misuse and diversion while still treating patients with compassion.
When can I supply a medicine without a prescription?
That depends on the medicine's class and the circumstances. Section 3 explains what makes a prescription valid, how medicine classes work, when supply without a prescription is lawful, and how to handle substitution and suspected prescribing errors.
A dispensing error I made is under review. How can this course help?
Section 7 covers dispensing errors, incident reporting and candour, and Section 8 explains how complaints, medical liability and disciplinary routes apply to pharmacists. The course helps you reflect on the cause and show the changes you have made. It cannot decide any outcome, so take advice from your employer, insurer or lawyer as well.
Will it count towards DHA or DOH CPD for pharmacists?
Your licensing authority decides how any learning counts towards your CPD or a requirement it has set. Check your authority's current rules before you submit the certificate, which shows the course title, 3 hours (estimated) and your completion date.
Who is the course for?
Community and hospital pharmacists, pharmacists in charge, clinical pharmacists, and assistant pharmacists and technicians working in pharmacies, hospitals, clinics and medical warehouses in any emirate.
How is it assessed?
Every section ends with a knowledge check. The closing test sets 20 pharmacy scenarios and the pass mark is 16 (80%). Once you pass, you download your certificate of completion and write a structured reflective account.
How this course was built
Official sources only
Every legal and regulatory point comes from primary sources: UAE federal health laws, the licensing authorities' codes, standards and policies, and official government guidance. Anything we cannot confirm is left out.
Original, edition by edition
Lessons, scenarios and assessment questions are written by us for each edition separately, then checked for accuracy, teaching quality and fair assessment before publication.
Reviewed when rules change
When a code, standard or law changes, the affected courses are reviewed and updated. Reported errors in legal or regulatory facts are corrected first.
Licensing integrity, CPD and good standing, respect at the point of care, civility, candour, digital conduct and conflicts of interest for every UAE profession.
Lawful, safe handling of narcotic, psychotropic and semi-controlled medicines in the UAE: classification, who may prescribe, the unified platform, pharmacy checks, diversion and remediation.
Honesty in licensing and CPD claims, records and late entries, sick leave certificates and reports, conflicts of interest, referral commissions, research and advertising.
Completed12 Oct 2026