A 4-Step Guide on What to Do When the Pharmacist Makes an Error

Have you ever been ill and visited the doctor where you were given a prescription? Then, the medication did not seem to work and made you feel worse? The doctor is called, and another prescription is sent to the pharmacy. This one seems to work. But, why did the first prescription fail to help? Was it the physician’s error in prescribing or the pharmacist’s error in filling the prescription?

A Mistake at the Pharmacy:

If a patient picks up a prescription for a medical problem and has serious adverse effects, something is wrong. Perhaps a pharmaceutical error was made. These errors can lead to serious health risks and even death.

If it can be proven that the wrong medication was used to fill a patient’s prescription and the mistake resulted in serious health problems, there may be a legal case to seek monetary compensation. Medical bills resulting from pharmaceutical error injuries can be high. But, how can a patient find out if it was a prescribing error by their physician or a pharmaceutical error?

Who Made the Error?

When medical treatment goes wrong and the patient suffers an injury due to negligence or error, the guilty party must be determined along with what was done wrong. Four parties can be to blame:

1. The doctor could have prescribed incorrect medication. The patient’s medical history could have been neglected or ignored.

2. The pharmacist might have filled the prescription with the wrong medication, kept inaccurate records, or failed to list possible side effects.

3. The pharmacy employees might have made errors entering the patient’s information or labeling the prescription bottle.

4. Drug manufacturers could have failed to test the product adequately, label the medication correctly, or include warnings of side effects.

Some common pharmacy errors include:

1. Filling a patient prescription with the wrong medication or the wrong dosage.

2. Providing inaccurate medical advice, side effect information, or not asking the patient about allergies to certain medications.

3. Mixing up prescription labels

4. Not recording the patient’s current medications and drug history.

Possible Consequences of Pharmaceutical Error:

Pharmaceutical errors may result in serious health issues including allergic reactions, anaphylactic shock, heart failure, birth defects, miscarriage, organ failure, seizures, and convulsions. Some of these health issues are experienced right away but others take months to become apparent.

Steps to Take for Pharmaceutical Errors:

1. When you pick up a prescription, open the package and ask the pharmacist questions to confirm you have the correct prescription.

2. If after taking a prescription, you or a family member suffer adverse effects, keep the remaining prescription for evidence.

3. Inform the pharmacy. A good pharmacy should be willing to talk to you right away and treat you with respect. They should acknowledge any mistake and contact your doctor to inform them about the error. They should advise you to see your doctor or go to the hospital depending on the seriousness of the error. Then, the pharmacy should find out how the error happened and create an action plan to avoid future errors.

4. Contact a law firm for help when the error resulted in serious injury.

Avoiding pharmaceutical errors is the first step in eliminating problems with prescriptions. Always take steps to confirm the prescription you pick up is the right one. If you suspect an error with your prescription, stop taking the medication and report the problem to the pharmacy and your doctor right away.