When you pick up your prescription, most people grab the bag they are given, pay their bill, and go on their way. We usually do not question the pharmacist and assume that our medicine is correct. But pharmacists are human and they make mistakes, too. Unfortunately, when a pharmacist makes a mistake it could cost someone their life. When a pharmacy error occurs, many times it is discovered that the pharmacist breached a duty of care.
The pharmacist has a duty of care to you, the patient.
Pharmacists have a duty to patients to follow a standard of care and do their job correctly. There are many steps that pharmacists take in order to prevent mistakes and ensure that patients receive the right medicine, including:
- checking with the doctor if a written prescription is unclear;
- double checking dosage amounts and dosage instructions;
- checking that the labels match patient information.
Many times, pharmacists fail to follow the proper steps to ensure safety when filling prescriptions, or simply make mistakes while performing their job.
Mistakes can occur in too many ways to count.
Pharmacist malpractice can occur in many ways, including filling prescriptions incorrectly, improper bottle labeling, improper dosage instructions, or failing to check dangerous drug interactions. Often, pharmacists mistake similar-sounding drugs, or hand the wrong prescription to the wrong person.
Patients can file a pharmacy malpractice lawsuit in order to receive compensation for injuries caused by negligent pharmacist actions. Usually, a pharmacy lawsuit has to prove that
- The pharmacist had a duty of care
- The pharmacist breached that duty of care
- The patient was harmed because of that breach of care.
Our firm has represented many clients who were injured because of pharmacy malpractice. Order our free book if you want to learn how to hold a pharmacy accountable for mistakes. You can also contact our pharmacy error attorneys at 888-526-7616 for a free, no obligation case review.