Filling a prescription may be so commonplace, you may not give it much thought. After you pick up your prescription from the pharmacy, you may leaf through the indications for usage. Then you probably begin taking the medication as normal.
But one step you might not think to take is to verify that the drug you’ve received is actually the one the doctor prescribed for you. You trust the people at your pharmacy. However, medication mistakes are a very common form of medical malpractice. Until you can identify the drug by sight, it is safest to double-check that it is the right medicine before you take it.
Checking your medication can be quick and easy
There was a time when you would need to thumb through a massive copy of a Physicians’ Desk Reference to verify if the drug in question matched the description of the actual prescription. These days, you can go to websites that will quickly help you determine if the right drug is in the container. Many container labels include a description of the medication as well.
Double checking helps protect you from pharmaceutical mistakes. Pharmacists may work long hours or handle multiple prescription requests simultaneously. Both burnout and distraction can increase the odds of someone making a mistake, such as giving a patient the wrong medication or the wrong dosage of the right drug.
Medication errors, like other forms of medical malpractice, can have costly consequences for patients if they aren’t caught before they cause damage. If you are harmed due to a pharmaceutical error, it’s wise to seek legal guidance to determine what your options are.
