Medicines play a vital role in our society as many rely upon prescribed medication to ease symptoms and help prevent or cure illness and disease. It is therefore vital that patients have access to the correct medication they need.
Unfortunately, a significant number of preventable medication errors occur every year which can lead to traumatic consequences for patients and their families.
The most common examples of medication errors include:
- Patients being prescribed the incorrect dose of medication by their GP or a medical professional.
- Chemists and pharmacists dispensing the wrong medication or an incorrect dose of medication to a patient.
- Patients being prescribed medication without appropriate advice.
- Medication being dispensed to the wrong patient.
- Medication being labelled incorrectly.
- Medication being repeatedly prescribed without a proper review.
- Monitoring issues including the failure to take into account the patient’s liver and renal function, for example.
- Patients being prescribed medication which they are allergic to.
- Patients being prescribed medication that clashes with medication they are already prescribed to.
When a GP or a medical professional makes a mistake such as the above examples in prescribing medication to a patient, the patient could suffer severe harm, disability, and even death.
Claims in medical negligence for medication or prescription errors
If you have experienced a situation of medication or prescription error, you may be entitled to seek compensation if this resulted in an avoidable injury to you.
Claims involving medication errors can be complex. If you are concerned that you, or a loved one, has suffered an avoidable injury as a result of a prescription or medication error, it is important to seek specialist advice from solicitors who are experienced in dealing with these types of claims.
How can we help?
Marcus Williams is a Paralegal in our Medical Negligence team, which is ranked in Tier One by the independently researched publication, The Legal 500.
For advice on the subjects discussed in this article, please get in touch with Marcus or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester, or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online enquiry form.
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