Walgreens may want its customers to believe they are a caring, responsible neighborhood pharmacy, but a Michigan man has a different opinion.

Michael Wells of Milford Village, MI did not expect to put his life at risk after his prostate surgery in October 2003. His surgeon took steps to prevent a post-surgery infection by prescribing an antibiotic; with a little time, Wells should have healed completely.

But instead, Wells suffered intense leg cramps as a result of the medication. After five days of suffering, he did some online research and discovered that he had been given the wrong medication: Walgreens filled his prescription with Diuril, a diuretic, instead of his antibiotic.  He went back to Walgreens and the pharmacist admitted to the error.

Without the antibiotic treatment, Wells developed a painful infection in his surgical wound that spread across most of his lower body.  He spent several months fighting the infection, enlisting the help of three doctors—one of whom confirmed that the infection was likely a result of the pharmacist's error.  Wells filed suit for his injury against Walgreens in February 2006.

Despite Walgreens’ stance that pharmacy errors are rare, these mistakes can have devastating effects.  If you need the advice of a Houston medication error attorney, order our free book, “How to Make Pharmacies Pay for Injuries Caused by Medication Errors,” or call Kennedy Hodges at 888-526-7616.