The Board of Pharmacy conducts inspections of pharmacies to ensure that the dispensing of prescription drugs is occurring in a safe, clean environment and being done by competent licensed individuals according to federal and state drug laws. The Board conducts opening inspections of pharmacies applying for an initial license, and at least a biennial inspection of each licensed pharmacy. The Board employs five inspectors who each cover a certain geographic region of the state and operate out of their homes. Arlie Winters acts in the capacity of Compliance Coordinator for the inspectors. The inspectors and the counties they cover are as follows:
Charles "Buck" Selby - Braxton, Clay, Fayette, Greenbrier, McDowell, Mercer, Monroe, Nicholas, Pocahontas, Raleigh, Randolph, Summers, Upshur, Webster, Wyoming.
Dave Gerkin - Calhoun, Doddridge, Gilmer, Harrison, Jackson, Marion, Mason, Monongalia, Pleasants, Putnam, Ritchie, Roane, Taylor, Tyler, Wetzel, Wirt, Wood.
Irvin VanMeter - Boone, Cabell, Kanawaha, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, Wayne.
Roger Shallis - Barbour, Berkeley, Brooke, Grant, Hampshire, Hancock, Hardy, Jefferson, Lewis, Marshall, Mineral, Morgan, Ohio, Pendleton, Preston, Tucker.
Each year half of the pharmacies will be visited by their inspector for a routine inspection, with the other half inspected the following year. So, each pharmacy will be visited by an inspector only once every two years unless a problem or special circumstance arises.
During the actual visit by the inspector, he will fill out an inspection form and list those items found to not be in compliance with the law. A Non-Compliance Correction Report will be issued showing these items requiring the pharmacist-in-charge to show the corrective action they have taken on each of the non-compliant items and send this report to the Board office within ten days. Regardless of when a pharmacy was or will be inspected, the pharmacist-in-charge should continually take time to identify areas of non-compliance and correct these areas as a method od continuous quality improvement.