A doctor who stole synthetic opioids from the Launceston General Hospital (LGH) to treat his anxiety has been sentenced.
Dr Nabil Nathie was sentenced in the Launceston Magistrates Court on October 20, 2026, after pleading guilty to a count each of stealing, using a controlled drug, and possessing a controlled drug.
For the offending, the South Launceston man was ordered to pay a fine of $5000.
According to court documents, from May 27 to June 11 2025, Nathie stole fentanyl, syringes and tourniquets from the LGH and possessed and used the fentanyl.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 100 times stronger than morphine, used to treat severe pain and major trauma.
Waste disposal uncovers drug theft
Police prosecutor Jack Fawdry said Nathie had been working as a registrar at the LGH when, in May 2025, a waste disposal company found discarded syringes and empty fentanyl ampoules - sealed glass or plastic containers - inside sanitary waste bags.
Police searched Nathie's home in June 2025 and found 20 broken, empty fentanyl vials and three broken naloxone ampoules - a drug blocker that reverses the effects of opioids used for drug overdoses.
The court heard that Nathie took small doses of fentanyl before, during, and after shifts at the LGH.
Before his sentencing, on September 30, 2026, Nathie's defence lawyer James Oxley said Nathie did not give patients less fentanyl than was appropriate and did not divert medicine intended for a patient.
LGH 'difficult place to work', Nathie used drugs to cope
Mr Oxley said Nathie would use doses of 10 micrograms, one-tenth of what would be in a vial.
"It was that amount that was truly excess to the amount the patient should have received that Dr Nathie was retaining and later using," Mr Oxley said.
Mr Oxley told the court that Nathie had experienced mental health issues and had found the LGH a "difficult place to work" at times and had experienced severe stress.
He said that Nathie was experiencing severe anxiety, which disrupted his sleep, and began using fentanyl to deal with the stress.
As of September 30, 2026, Nathie had made full admissions to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), Mr Oxley said, which had imposed conditions on his ability to practise medicine.
He said AHPRA's final decision was still pending and was contingent on the outcome of Nathie's court matter.