Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog
It seems that there really is an app for everything. In a recent article by DNA India, a new app is on the market targeted towards Indian physicians. The app, called Safe RX, is a way for doctors to put in prescriptions for patients that ensure the prescriptions are legible. In addition, the app automatically can translate the prescription into 14 different languages, further decreasing any chance of confusion.
With the incidents of prescription error at an all-time high, apps like this one aim to fill a gap where oversight is minimal.
In addition to the safety aspects of the app, it will also automatically recommend generic equivalent for brand name prescriptions. This should help to keep medical costs down for people without insurance.
The app, which will only be released in India, will only cost physicians pennies a day and should help them avoid making any kind of medication error. While the app is not available in the United States, if the app is a success abroad, there can be little doubt that a similar system will soon be implemented in the United States.
Prescription Errors
Prescription errors can be caused by a number of different factors. At each step in the prescription process, there is the possibility for a breakdown. The process begins when a doctor fills out a prescription. Hopefully, the doctor legibly writes the prescription so a pharmacist can fill it without hassle. However, in some cases the pharmacist believes he or she knows what the doctor wrote down, but in fact got it wrong. In these cases the patient taking the unprescribed medicine is at risk for serious side effects.
There is also a possibility that a drug is mislabeled due to a manufacturer or pharmacist error. In this case, one pharmacist fills the prescription with what is labeled as the correct drug. However, in reality the medication is a compromised version of the drug or another medication entirely, because of another pharmacist’s error. Again, in this case the patient ends up consuming a medication that they were not prescribed.
Regardless of who is at fault, the problem remains the same for the unwitting patient; they end up taking an often dangerous medication based on the error of a medical professional. When these cases result in injury or death, the people responsible can and should be held to task.
Recovering for a Prescription Error Injury
If you or a loved one has been injured because you took a prescription that was improperly filled, you may be entitled to compensation based on the medical professional’s negligence. However, because so much is at stake for the doctor or pharmacist who may have caused the injury, they will likely retain skilled legal counsel to defend them. Make sure that you have a dedicated attorney in your court as well. The lawyers at the prescription error law firm of Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers have years of experience recovering for their clients in all kinds of medical malpractice and prescription error cases. Click here, or call 410-654-3600 today to schedule a free initial consultation.
More Blog Posts:
Hospitals Beginning to Place Pharmacists in the Emergency Room to Cut Down on Medication Errors, Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog, June 25, 2014.
Prescription Error Causes Man to Permanently Lose His Sight, Pharmacy Error Injury Lawyer Blog, July 16, 2014.