Medications have to be handled correctly when they are being administered to patients. In a hospital setting, the in-house pharmacy provides the medications to the nurses who give them to the patients. For many patients, the drugs they are given in the hospital are the same ones that they take at home. This gives patients a safety advantage since they know what their own medication should look like. However, there might be some instances in which there are minor changes between what they take at home and what they are getting at the hospital. A smart patient will ask questions about unfamiliar-looking medications to make sure they are getting the right drugs.
There are times when pharmacists, nurses or doctors will make errors regarding these medications — and patients aren’t always able to prevent mistakes. The wrong medication puts patients at risk of suffering negative reactions that can be severe. This is never something that hospitalized individuals should have to deal with on top of whatever condition has them in the hospital in the first place.
The impact of a medication error can range from minor to life-threatening. In some cases, a medication error can leave a patient with an extended hospital stay or entirely new problems that will continue long after they leave.
You should never have to pay the financial cost for another person’s errors, especially when a little more attention would have prevented your injury. A medical malpractice lawsuit over prescription errors might be in order depending on the circumstances of your case. Protect your rights by finding out more about your legal options as soon as you are able.
