The American Society of Hospital Pharmacists realizes that there are many people who may have an influence on a prescription before it reaches a patient.  This is especially true in hospitals, since nurses are not only overseeing your medication but the medication of numerous other patients—and a prescription drug error in these circumstances can be fatal.
In order to reduce the risk of medication errors in hospitals, nurses are advised not only to double check all medications before administering, but also to interact with the patient to make sure he stays informed about his health care. 
A few ways the ASHP recommends nurses educate patients about their medications:

• Nurses should discuss the use and dosage of all medications with a patient (or a patient’s caregiver) and make sure the patient understands how much of each medication he normally receives.  Patients should also know why they are taking each medication and beware of any drug interactions, allergies or special instructions.
• If a patient raises questions about a medication at any point, nurses must listen, answer to the best of their ability and double-check the medication order if the patient thinks it may be incorrect. 
• If a patient objects to a medication or method of treatment, his decision should be discussed with his physician and documented in his patient records

To learn more about what you can do after a hospital medication mistake, contact the board-certified pharmacy error lawyers at Kennedy Hodges today at 888-526-7616.