Last April a young Houston girl died after her pharmacy gave her the wrong medication. This past week the family of that girl filed a lawsuit against the pharmacy for medical malpractice. The lawsuit alleges that the pharmacy dispensed a dosage that was 10 times higher than what the girl was actually prescribed.
Although not widely publicized, pharmacy medication errors do occur with some regularity. According to a study in 2010, nearly 1.3 million Americans are hurt each year by medication mistakes made by pharmacies and almost 100,000 people die. Part of the reason why pharmacy malpractice can be so dangerous is because when people get a prescription filled they often do not think to question the pharmacist. Common pharmacy errors include: filling the prescription with the wrong dosage or with the wrong drug all together, improperly labeling bottles, not telling the patient the correct dosage to take, and not finding out what interactions the prescribed medication has with other medicines the patient is taking.
When people hear the term medical malpractice they almost certainly think about mistakes made by doctors. However, the term can apply to pharmacists as well. In order to succeed in a medical malpractice suit against a doctor or a pharmacy/pharmacist a plaintiff must show that:
A. A duty was owed (physician/pharmacist – patient relationship)
B. There was a breach of that duty (the mistake or act of malpractice)
C. The mistake or act of malpractice was the cause of the harm to the plaintiff; and
D. The plaintiff suffered damages of some sort.
If you or a loved one has suffered harm or loss of life because of a pharmacy error call Ben Bronston and Associates. You have a right to hold the pharmacy or pharmacist liable for their negligence and the harm you suffer as a result. The attorneys at Ben Bronston and Associates have used their many years of experience to help victims of negligence in Texas get the recovery they deserve, and will devote their efforts to doing the same for you.
