While many Maryland pharmacy errors occur at the thousands of retail pharmacies across the state, a large portion of the state’s overall pharmacy errors still occur in medical settings, such as hospitals, rehab facilities, and nursing homes. In fact, according to a recent study, some hospital patients’ medical records reveal as many as seven pharmacy errors. Of course, while not all of these are clinically significant, the trend is still disturbing.
Due to the number of pharmacy errors across the nation, as well as the potential that these errors can result in serious injuries or death, researchers have undertaken renewed efforts to discover new methods to decrease the rate of pharmacy errors. One place researchers are focusing their efforts is on patients who take a large number of prescription medications, based on the assumption that this population is at the greatest risk of experiencing an error.
According to a recent study, when pharmacists, rather than medical staff, take a patient’s history, the number of errors in subsequent prescriptions is drastically reduced. The way that many hospitals operate is that the job of entering a patient’s history belongs to anyone who works with the patient. While this may sound effective in that numerous medical professionals are reviewing a patient’s history, the result is that no single person feels accountable. However, when a single pharmacist is given the task of entering a patient’s history, that pharmacist is the sole person accountable, and as a result, the instances of errors drastically decrease.
Maryland Pharmacy Errors
The above discussion illustrates not just one way that prescription error rates can be decreased, but also the fact that prescription errors may have nothing to do with an on-duty pharmacist and may have more to do with the attending medical professional overseeing a patient’s care.
When a Maryland pharmacy error occurs, there may be several responsible parties. Of course, this includes the on-duty pharmacist, but it can also include the attending physician, nurses, and even the hospital or medical center where the error occurred. The determination of which parties should be named in a Maryland pharmacy error lawsuit can be a tricky one, and it is best left to an attorney with ample experience in this area of the law.
Are You in Need of an Attorney?
If you or a loved one has recently been a victim of a Maryland pharmacy error, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. The dedicated Maryland personal injury and wrongful death attorneys at the law firm of Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers have extensive experience representing victims in a wide range of pharmacy error claims, including those brought against hospitals and nursing homes. We cater our representation to the needs of each client, and we work diligently to ensure that all of your questions are answered along the way. To learn more, and to speak with an attorney about your case, call 410-654-3600 to schedule a free consultation today.
More Blog Posts:
As Online Retailer Enters Pharmaceutical Business, Some Are Advocating for Change, Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog, December 1, 2017.
Court Finds Evidence Insufficient in Recent Pharmacy Error Case, Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog, December 15, 2017.