Medication Errors Cause Serious Harm to Patients

When you consider the hundreds of thousands of prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, vitamins, herbal supplements, and lotions available in the US today, you can see the potential for serious mistakes by healthcare providers. In fact, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) reports that 7,000 to 9,000 patients die every year because of medication errors. Many more suffer severe harm and adverse events, though issues with reporting prevent an accurate estimate.

There are many individuals involved with medication administration in the health care setting, from nurses and doctors to physician’s assistants and orderlies. Any of these practitioners may be held liable for mistakes under Alaska medical malpractice laws. When you consider the massive losses and long-term consequences you could sustain, it is important to pursue your legal remedies. An Anchorage medical malpractice attorney will assist with the legal process, but you can also review some basics about medication error claims.

 

Types of Medication Errors

There are countless mistakes a healthcare provider can make when administering medication, but they tend to fall into specific categories. In the medical profession, they refer to the patient’s “rights” with medication, including:

  • Right medication
  • Right dose
  • Right patient
  • Right route
  • Right timing
  • Right frequency

 When any of these rights becomes a wrong, a medication error was made by a healthcare provider at some point during treatment. These mistakes may occur in any medical environment, including hospitals, clinics, urgent care centers, and your primary care physician.

 

Reasons Providers Make Mistakes 

Negligence is behind medication errors, and NIH points out that most occur by physicians at the ordering or prescribing stage. These represent almost half of all medication mistakes, though nurses and pharmacists also commit errors. The reasons behind mishaps include:

  • Issues communicating drug orders;
  • Wrong medication chosen from a drop-down menu in the Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE) system;
  • Illegible, messy handwriting;
  • Confusion and miscommunication over similarly named medications;
  • Not reviewing the patient chart for drug interactions and allergies; and,
  • Understaffing with nursing professionals, often leading to missed or delayed medication.

 

Harm From Medication Errors

The medications used in the practice of medicine are powerful substances, so they can cause significant reactions in the human body. When a patient gets the wrong drug, they may suffer organ damage and pain because of unnecessary treatment. Meanwhile, you are not receiving the proper medication to treat your medical condition.

Medication errors may constitute medical malpractice, so it is possible to recover compensation for your losses. Examples include medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and emotional anguish.

 

Contact an Alaska Medical Malpractice Lawyer for Details

This information about medication errors is useful, and it is helpful to know that you have legal remedies if you were harmed by a mistake. However, you should trust our team at Power & Power Law to tackle the legal process and get the compensation you deserve. For more information, please contact our offices in Anchorage, Alaska. You can set up a no-cost case review by calling 907-222-9990 or going online.