Is Your Pharmacist Responsible for Your Houston Medication Error?
No matter who you are, chances are you’re guilty of doing the bare minimum of a job at some point in your life. People are imperfect, and the day-to-day routine of their jobs can lead to a less-than-ideal workday. Whether you cut corners while cleaning the bathroom or left the office at ten to five on a Friday, sometimes we just want the job over—and that certainly applies to your punching-the-clock at your first job out of high school. But, pharmacists aren’t flipping burgers. They’re responsible for the lives of hundreds of people, and they have a responsibility to treat their jobs—and clients—with the utmost care.
The American Society of Hospital Pharmacists recently released a paper stating that all pharmacists have a duty to go above and beyond the minimum requirements of the profession, taking it upon themselves to ensure medication errors are avoided when possible, caught before harm, and reported when mistakes are made. The ASHP asserts that all pharmacists have a duty to:
Stay up-to-date on current research and publications regarding drug therapy
Be familiar with all medication ordering systems and drug distribution policies
Keep all drug dispensing areas clean and orderly and perform one procedure at a time
Always contact the prescriber when confronted with a confusing medication order rather than “guess” the meaning of ambiguous information
Review an original copy of the written prescription before dispensing any non-emergency medications
Dispense medications in ready-to-administer dosages whenever possible
Review any medications that are returned to the pharmacy to investigate system breakdowns or future causes of medication error
As experienced Texas pharmacy error lawyers, we have seen far too many pharmacists and pharmacy staff making potentially fatal prescription mistakes in Texas with only an apology to offer the victim. We believe that the best way to bring down the number of medication errors is to hold pharmacies accountable for their mistakes. For more information on these errors, order a FREE copy of our book, How to Make Pharmacies Pay for Injuries Caused by Medication Errors. If someone you love has been injured because of a pharmacist’s mistake, we can help. Call Kennedy Hodges at 888-526-7616 today for a free case evaluation.
Kennedy Hodges, LLP helps individuals who have suffered serious injury due to prescription and pharmacy errors across the country, including distributing wrong medications, administering the wrong dosage, and failure to provide medication warnings and instructions.
