Medication Malpractice
According to the National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting, about 1.3 million people annually are injured by medication errors. In essence, a medication error is a preventable event that leads to patient harm by means of incorrect medication or incorrect dosage.
Medication errors occur in several ways including:
- improper dosage being administered or prescribed;
- utilizing the wrong method or route of medication administration (i.e., giving a drug orally when it should be given through an IV);
- dispensing of the wrong medication by a health care provider or pharmacist.
Because patients are generally trusting of their physicians and pharmacists, there can be a lack of fact-checking of medication/dosage between patient and provider. If a patient does not catch a negligent prescriber’s mistake, serious injury or even death can occur. While it is not a patient’s fault for ingesting an incorrectly prescribed medication, there are potentially major health consequences.
All hospitals and pharmacists should have organizational systems for administering, ordering, and dispensing medications. Guidelines from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists clearly state the pharmacy’s responsibility “for the procurement, distribution, and control of all drugs used within the institution.” For example, before dispensing a medication in a non-emergency situation, a pharmacist should review an original copy of the written medication order and participate in a self-checking process in reading prescriptions, labeling the prescription, and calculating dosage. Pharmacists should never guess or assume the intent of a confusing medication order.
The physician and pharmacist must communicate in those situations to avoid an error. Medication prescribers, such as doctors, should evaluate the patient’s total status before ordering a new medication to ensure that it will not adversely interact with medications the patient is currently taking. Moreover, healthcare providers should work to ensure that the dosage level for each medication is correct and will not adversely affect the patient or the existing medications of the patient.
How We Can Help Your Case
As experienced medical malpractice attorneys in Baltimore, Maryland, we routinely handle medication error cases against area hospitals and pharmacies. In many instances, these cases settle prior to trial because the liability of the physician or pharmacist is clear.
For example, our office has successfully handled cases in which a pharmacist erroneously filled a patient’s prescription for Tegretol extended-release tablets (for seizures) with generic Tegretol (regular release). This caused our client to suffer unnecessary seizures and a complicated hospitalization course. In addition, we successfully resolved a case in which our client was prescribed medication to assist her with sleeping, but instead received blood pressure medication from the hospital pharmacy. Each of these cases was resolved prior to trial.
If you or a loved one has been affected by medication malpractice, it is critical to have an informed, detail-oriented, and dedicated medical malpractice attorney who will tirelessly advocate for you and your case. Please contact Andrew G. Slutkin and Ethan S. Nochumowitz for a free consultation at 800-385-2243.
Disclaimer: This page is informative in nature. The information contained herein is not to be considered legal advice and there is no attorney-client relationship formed between Silverman Thompson and the reader.