Get Started
Kennedy Law logo

Is my Doctor Responsible for my Pharmacy Injury?

For people who have been harmed due to a case of pharmacy negligence, there are usually more questions than answers at first. You might be dealing with very real changes to your overall health, your ability to work, and your future in your career.

Once the dust has settled, you are going to need to figure out how to proceed with the process of seeking compensation for your injuries related to a pharmacy error. You might be wondering how to handle the next steps and the answer to that is simple. The first important step is to engage the right personal injury lawyer for your pharmacy negligence injuries.

There is more to the process of seeking compensation for your pharmacy-related injuries. Read on to learn more.

What is Pharmacy Negligence?

Pharmacists and doctors have a responsibility to make sure that every medication that a patient is prescribed is given at the right dose and with the right instructions. They are also required to make sure that there are no other health conditions that prevent a patient from taking a new medication as well as checking for any potential drug interactions with the new medication that could cause significant injury.

Pharmacists and doctors have a duty of care to every patient to make sure that they do not make errors like this. Drug interactions and prescribing the wrong medications can cause significant injury as well as death. Patients are trusting the medical professionals involved in their case to make sure that they are not given any medication that they should not be taking.

Kinds of Injuries That Can Result From Pharmacy Negligence

Pharmacy negligence can lead to lifelong health problems and in serious cases, death. Many drug interactions will cause hives, a feeling of the skin being hot or headaches, and nausea. In severe cases of an allergic reaction, medical treatment is necessary right away to prevent death. The range of severity and presentation of pharmacy negligence-related injuries can often make it difficult to diagnose the actual reason for your symptoms.

In cases where the drug itself was delivered correctly, but the dosage is wrong, patients might experience side effects over time. This could be numbness or tingling in the hands and feet, headaches or mood and personality changes, or paralysis and muscle pain. This kind of negligence often creeps up on patients because they are getting the right medication but at the wrong dose.

In instances where drug interactions are to blame or the medication should not be taken due to other existing health conditions, the symptoms can be quite severe. The symptoms of injuries related to pharmacy negligence can be variable per patient, which makes it hard in some cases to tie health concerns to pharmacy negligence.

Can my Doctor be Responsible for my Pharmacy injury?

There are often many people who are involved in the prescription process. A nurse or a doctor could input the order and it could be changed or canceled and altered many times if you are in the hospital and have not been discharged yet. Doctors and nurses in busy clinics or at the ER can change in the middle of your treatment, leading to confusion about which medications have already been filled and what medications a patient needs.

While the pharmacist has the ultimate duty to fill the prescription and they are expected to do their due diligence to examine patient history and the other medications that a person is taking, the doctor is really the first person who makes the decision to give a patient a medication.

A doctor is always charged with the responsibility of looking at a patient’s medical history and the other medications that a patient has reported that they are taking. These are key parts of the doctor’s examination and they are important to prevent adverse reactions to medications that a patient is given.

If the doctor or the nurse who takes the patient history and examines the chart misses something important the pharmacist might not know about potential drug interactions or other issues related to giving the medication to the patient. This is why doctors or even nurses might actually be responsible for a pharmacy injury and not the pharmacist.

There are instances where patients do not give thorough or complete medical histories to their doctor and some patients are not good at remembering all of the medications that they take. It is possible that doctors, nurses, and pharmacists can give the wrong medication because they did not know that the patient was taking a drug that would interact with this new medication.

This is part of the reason why these kinds of cases are so hard to take to court or to seek settlement for. It can be very hard to prove who is responsible for your pharmacy injury.

You Need to Work With a Skilled Personal Injury Lawyer

Due to the complexity of these kinds of cases, you will need to work with a skilled personal injury lawyer to help you to seek the compensation that you deserve for your pharmacy injury. An experienced personal injury lawyer will make sure that a thorough investigation is done into your case and they will make sure that they help you determine how much compensation you are eligible for related to your injuries.

You cannot hope to tackle this process on your own, especially if you are still having health issues related to the pharmacy negligence you experienced. Working with a skilled personal injury lawyer will make it possible for you to seek compensation for your injuries and get your life back on track.

Contact us today for help with your pharmacy negligence case. We take pride in caring for the needs of our personal injury clients who have been harmed through pharmacy negligence. Schedule a consultation with us and we will help you to get the compensation that you deserve, no matter who is responsible for your pharmacy negligence injuries.

Contact Us

Order Our Free Book

If you or a loved one has suffered because of a wrong medication error, you can order our free book, "Making Pharmacies Pay For Their Mistakes" to learn more about taking action because of a medication error.
Order Now

More Posts

Top 10 Medical Errors

Pharmacy errors can cause death or significant health concerns. If you think that you have been harmed due to a

July 11, 2021

Can I Sue My Pharmacist for Neglect?

Pharmacy negligence results in 1.5 million injuries to people in the US each year. These errors happen in the hospital

August 10, 2021

Can Pharmacist Substitution Lead to Pharmacy Negligence?

Pharmacists are required by law and by definition of their duties to provide specific care to their customers and patients

August 10, 2021
1 2 3 46

Get in Touch with Us

Disclaimer: Do not to submit privileged information through this form. Submitting a form does not create an attorney client/relationship.

Contact Us

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Stay up to date with the latest on Pharmacy Error Law
crosschevron-right-circle