How Prescription Errors Happen

It used to be that apothecaries were the medicine experts who worked in establishments to procure, prepare, and mix the drug properties found in plants to create healing products for various ailments.

Today, large pharmaceutical companies spend billions to research and produce drugs on a massive scale. They rely upon the pharmacist to dispense their drugs to the consumer. Most pharmacists, in turn, work in pharmacies belonging to larger retailer chains.

Prescription errors occur every day in the U.S. and can happen anywhere along the supply and distribution channels consisting of the drug company, physician's practice, hospital, and pharmacy.

Prescription errors are one of the leading causes of medical malpractice. The consequences of prescription errors can mean serious personal injury or even death for the consumer.

From the time a drug is distributed, prescribed, and dispensed, any number of prescription errors are prone to happen. They include: 

• Poor marketing by the drug maker - Drug manufacturers are notorious for giving new drugs names that are similar to existing ones. This allows for greater chance of wrong medication errors because many of these same-sounding name drugs also look alike. 
• Illegible doctor handwriting - Many physicians and physician assistants have rushed and messy handwriting on their prescription orders. If the pharmacy fails to contact the doctor for clarification, a pharmacist error can occur. 
• Mistyping of dosage instructions and/or warning labels - It is the pharmacist's professional duty to accurately fill your prescription and fully explain the indications, side effects, and dangerous drug interactions to you before dispensing. Failure to do so constitutes negligence. 
• Other causes - Pharmacist error and wrong drug malpractice can happen in a number of other ways. 

To learn more about prescription errors, visit our article library.  

Contacting an Aurora Prescription Error Lawyer

If you or a family member have been seriously injured by pharmacist error, you have the legal right to hold the pharmacy accountable for the physical and emotional damages you suffered.

The Aurora prescription error lawyers at the Law Offices of Barry G. Doyle, P.C. understand the complex legalities of medical malpractice cases in the Chicago area. Let us help defend your legal rights to seek just compensation for your pain and suffering caused by your pharmacist error injury. We can build a strong pharmacist error medical malpractice case and give you a voice against the vast resources of a pharmacy corporation or malpractice insurance company.

Contact us today for a FREE case evaluation on your pharmacist error medical malpractice claim: 1-312-263-1080.