Many people take medications daily. Prescription errors from doctors or medical professionals can have serious consequences for patients.
Understanding these errors is the first step in dealing with medical malpractice from professionals.
Poor handwriting
Doctors sometimes write prescriptions in a rush, and their handwriting can be hard to read. This can lead pharmacists to give the wrong medicine because they cannot read the instructions properly. When this happens, it can cause harm to patients both immediately and in the long term.
Similar-sounding medications
Another source of errors arises from medications with names that sound alike. Healthcare professionals may accidentally prescribe or dispense the wrong medication due to confusion between similar-sounding drug names. Such errors are medical negligence if proper precautions, such as double-checking prescriptions, are not taken to prevent them.
Incorrect dosage calculations
Sometimes, healthcare providers do not calculate the right dose of medicine for a patient. They might not consider the patient’s age, weight or health condition. Giving too much or too little of a medicine is dangerous.
Systematic failures
Sometimes, prescription errors occur due to systematic failures within healthcare systems. Poor staff training or reliance on outdated technology can all contribute to errors in prescribing and dispensing medications. These systemic failures may expose healthcare facilities to liability in cases of medical malpractice.
Prescription errors pose significant risks to patient safety and well-being, and they can also lead to confusion when individuals rely on these prescriptions to stay healthy. When those in charge of protecting patients make a serious error, medical malpractice can harm the lives of these vulnerable people.
