My Pharmacy Gave Me the Wrong Prescription: What Should I Do?

In a country where doctors, nurses, and pharmacists are well educated and trained, we don’t expect them to make mistakes. Unfortunately, pharmacists are just as likely to make errors at their job as anyone else.

If a pharmacist gave you the wrong prescription at the pharmacy, this is a type of pharmaceutical negligence and malpractice. Learn what to do next if you have been given the wrong prescription.

Can I File a Lawsuit If the Pharmacist Gave Me the Wrong Medication?

Many people wonder if they can contact a lawyer and file a lawsuit if they were given the wrong medication at the pharmacy. The truth is, you can file a lawsuit for any kind of error that your pharmacy may have made.

Suing a pharmacy for doing wrong is actually very important because they need to be held accountable for giving incorrect medications, dosages or instructions. It can also help the same problem from occurring again in the future which can save the lives of others.

If you think you have been given the wrong prescription or the wrong dosage, you should immediately contact your doctor, especially if you had already taken the medicine. They will be able to help determine if you need treatment or if it is necessary that you go to the hospital.

Taking the wrong medication can cause serious injury and even death in some cases. That’s why it’s extremely important to notify your doctor as soon as possible. After you have met with the doctor and have determined a treatment if any, you can consider contacting a lawyer and moving forward with a lawsuit.

Why Are Pharmacy Errors Increasing?

Every pharmacy has made errors including even the most common and large scale establishments such as Target, Costco, Walmart, and CVS. Hospital pharmacies and pharmacies on the internet are also prone to making errors. There are multiple reasons why these mistakes are increasing.

How Do Medicines Get Mixed Up?

The reason for receiving the wrong medicine varies. A pharmacist that is overworked and undertrained might accidentally give you medicine with a similar name because they are not paying attention or don’t know the difference between the medicines. Many medicines have names that are very similar, making it easy for undertrained pharmacists to provide the wrong one.

You might also receive the wrong medicine simply because a pharmacist was distracted and not paying attention.

How to Avoid Medicine Mix-Ups

You can’t really avoid a medicine mix-up because you are not the one behind the counter filling the bottles. However, there are some steps you can take to ensure you do not take the wrong medicine.

Before taking the medicine, look at the paperwork your doctor gave you and make sure the names and the dosage from the papers and the pill bottle match. If they look different, call your doctor right away to tell them the medicine you received.

The paperwork you get from the pharmacy should also give a description of the medicine such as the color, size, etc. Make sure the pills you have in the bottle match the description. Sometimes a pharmacist might accidentally put the wrong pills in the bottle but put the correct label making you think you have the correct medicine.

If you have any concerns, you should always call your doctor. You can even take the medicine into their office and have them check to make sure it’s correct.

How a Lawyer Can Help You

If you received the wrong medication, filing a lawsuit and talking to a lawyer is always an option. Lawyers can help advocate for you as well as do many other things like:

If you have been a victim of pharmacy negligence, contact Kennedy Law Firm today. We can investigate your case and determine what needs to be done.