According to the American Institute of Medicine, approximately 1,500,000 people are injured every year due to medication errors, and another approximate 7,000 are killed.  (Inst. Med. Preventing Medication Errors, 2007 and To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System, 2000).  The manner in  which the medication mistakes are made is limited only by one’s imagination, but typically are due to the wrong drug  being administered, or in the wrong dose, or with incorrect instructions and even the wrong prescription being given to the wrong patient. 

When someone inadvertently takes the wrong medication or the wrong dose because of a misfilled prescription or an improperly administered one, the health results can be catastrophic.  If someone needs a certain medication in the first place, they obviously have some health need to begin with, and taking the wrong medicine or wrong dosage can result in dire medical consequences.    To be on the safe side, if you pick up a prescription from a large pharmacy change, examine the bottle and package carefully to ensure you are getting what your doctor ordered in the correct dose.  If you do have an incorrect prescription medication, call your doctor immediately to get a new prescription.  Also, if you inadvertently ingested the wrong medicine due to a misfill or incorrect dosage, seek medical attention immediately.  Very importantly, do NOT dispose of the rest of the medicine.  Put it in a safe place so you can prove later that the prescription was incorrectly filled.

If you or a loved one  have been the victim of a prescription or medication error, the lawyers at Ronaldson and Kuchler have handled numerous cases against pharmacies and other dispensing locations.  We are here to help.  Be safe.