Pharmaceutical Errors
Posted Friday, December 13, 2019 by Chris Thayer
With over 7,000 different types of prescription medications available for purchase in the United States, pharmaceutical errors account for thousands of patient injuries and deaths each year.
These errors are entirely preventable, however, and the consequences of such an error can be life-threatening or fatal.
*Medication and Pharmaceutical Errors*The National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention indicates that a medication error occurs when a medication causes an injury due to some of the following reasons:
- A patient is given incorrect medication
- Medication is switched between patients incorrectly
- Medication is mislabeled
- Incorrect medication dosage is written, or distributed to the patient
- Medication is confused and given incorrectly to the patient due to a similar name with a different medication
- Incorrectly dispensing or prescribing a medication to a patient who has an allergy to it.
- Lack of communication by the doctor or pharmacist regarding the medication including possible side effects, negative interactions with other medications, or allergies
These mistakes are preventable either by the doctor writing the prescription, or the pharmacist filling the medication properly. Without extra precautions, these medications and pharmaceutical errors can cause severe injuries or death.
*Failure of Communication *The first line of defense with regard to pharmaceutical errors is with the doctor. Every doctor should ensure that a patient understands the name and dosage of the medication being prescribed to them, as well as any possible side effects or interactions with drugs they are currently taking. However, the second line of defense for patient safety rests at the pharmacy.
If pharmacists took the time to follow pharmacy protocols and safeguards, as well as visit directly with the patient, some of these pharmaceutical errors could be avoided. Every patient at a pharmacy should be asked whether or not they would like to visit with a pharmacist, as well as ensure that their medication does not interact with any other drugs they have been prescribed or to which they have listed allergies.
Visiting with a pharmacist can provide the opportunity for a patient to receive valuable information or possibly clarify anything that the pharmacist may not have in the computer system with respect to allergies or other medications the patient is currently taking. Some possible questions or discussions a pharmacist should have with a patient could include the following:
- Confirm with the patient that the correct medication was ordered, provided, and distributed in the correct dosage
- Confirm that the patient has no allergies to the new prescription that would adversely affect them in any way
- Confirm the patient’s medical history to ensure that no drug interactions exist with the current prescription being provided to the patient
These simple conversations between a pharmacist and a patient provide an extra layer of defense regarding any potential pharmaceutical errors, and can potentially avoid serious injuries or even death to a patient.
*Contact an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney*If you were injured due to the negligence of a doctor, pharmacist, or other medical professional with regard to a prescription, you should contact an experienced personal injury attorney. Our experienced legal team at the Pivotal Law Group at 206-340-2008 can help you build a strong case on your behalf. We proudly serve the Seattle, Bellevue, Kent, Renton, Burien, Mercer Island and Issaquah areas.