Frequently Asked Questions

For information on specific assessment criteria, please refer to the following review forms: 

For Hospital Pharmacy: 

• Hospital Pharmacy Review Form
• Hospital Pharmacist Review Form
• Hospital Pharmacy Technician Review Form

For Community Pharmacy: 

• Community Pharmacy Review Form
• Community Pharmacist Review Form
• Community Pharmacy Technician Review Form

1. Nature of Action:The Inquiry Committee of the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia (the “College”) conducted an investigation into the practice of pharmacy technician Tri Khai Vien (the “Registrant”), pursuant to section 33(4) of the Health Professions Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 183 (“HPA”).
    
   The Inquiry Committee and the Registrant have agreed to resolve all matters arising from the investigation by way of a Consent Agreement under section 36(1) of the HPA.
    
2. Effective date: November 20, 2025
    
3. Name of registrant: Tri Khai Vien
    
4. Location of Practice: Kelowna, BC
    
5. Admissions and Acknowledgements: The Registrant has admitted and/or acknowledged the following:
    
   1. On or about December 2023, the Registrant was reminded by his employer of his responsibilities for respectful conduct and personal space/boundaries.
   
   
   2. On September 25, 2024, the Registrant inappropriately touched and breached the personal space of a female co-worker when he touched their shoulders and kissed the top of their head. On numerous other occasions, the Registrant engaged in “unprofessional horseplay”, often of a sexually suggestive nature, with female co-workers.
   
   
   3. The Registrant admitted to the following:
       
      1. He gave his personal phone number to a female co-worker;
          
      2. He made inappropriate remarks and comments of a sexual nature in the presence of female co-workers;
          
      3. He referred to female co-workers by pet names;
          
      4. He breached the personal space and did not maintain professional boundaries with female co-workers;
          
      5. He engaged in behaviours (including physical contact) and made sexual remarks that his employer categorized as sexual harassment;
          
      6. He continued to make inappropriate comments and referred to female co-workers by pet names, despite receiving a ten-day suspension from his employer.
          
   4. The Registrant did not adhere to standards 6A, 7A, 7B, and 9I of the Code of Ethics. Therefore, the Inquiry Committee determined his conduct was unethical.
       
   5. The Registrant engaged in sexual misconduct as defined under section 26 of the HPA as he engaged in conduct that his employer categorized as sexual harassment.
       
   6. Disposition: The Registrant entered into a Consent Agreement with the College’s Inquiry Committee, wherein the Registrant consented to the following terms:
       
      1. To be suspended as a registrant of the College for 60 days from November 20, 2025 to January 19, 2026;
          
      2. To receive a letter of reprimand;
          
      3. To complete and pass an ethics course for healthcare professionals within 180 days of signing the Consent Agreement; and
          
      4. For a one-year period, to notify all current and future employers of the Inquiry Committee’s disposition of the investigation and public notification of the matter.
          
   7. Rationale:
      The Inquiry Committee determined that the Registrant engaged in behaviours that could undermine patients’ trust in registrants and society’s trust in the pharmacy profession. The Inquiry Committee categorized the Registrant’s conduct as professional misconduct of a sexual nature, and by extension, sexual misconduct and unethical.
       
      In reaching their decision on a disposition, the Inquiry Committee considered the Registrant’s lack of prior discipline history, his cooperation with the investigation, admissions and reflection to his conduct to be genuine and mitigating factors in its disposition. However, the Inquiry Committee ultimately determined that a suspension was appropriate to address the seriousness of the misconduct and the fact that the Registrant’s conduct continued despite receiving a ten-day suspension from his employer.
       
      The Inquiry Committee also considered similar cases reviewed in other jurisdictions. The Inquiry Committee recognized the similarities and differences between the Registrant’s conduct with these cases and determined that a two-month suspension is warranted and appropriate given the contributing mitigating and aggravating factors present in the matter.
       
      The Inquiry Committee considered the terms of the Consent Agreement necessary to protect the public, as well as send a clear message of deterrence to the profession.

Pharmacy professionals will be reviewed on focus areas that have been deemed the most relevant to professional pharmacy practice in British Columbia. The Board has identified a total of six focus areas they believe to have the greatest impact on public safety. Focus areas differ between pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. Each will be reviewed on four focus areas depending on their licence type: 

The focus areas for pharmacists are: 

• Patient Identification Verification
• Profile Check
• Counseling
• Documentation

The focus areas for pharmacy technicians are:

• Patient Identification Verification 
• Product Distribution 
• Collaboration 
• Documentation