Wrong Dosing Instructions on Prescription Labels Can Cause Children Harm

Related Links: How Many Pharmacy Labeling Errors Harm Children? Check Your Child’s Prescription for Labeling Errors

It may be scary to realize that pharmacists, nurses, and doctors make far more mistakes than you are even aware of. Shockingly, these errors are often simple mistakes such as mixing up one patient’s prescription with another prescription, forgetting to check for drug interactions, and putting the wrong instructions on the prescription label. However, even the simplest of mistakes can cause patients serious harm. While these pharmacy mistakes should never happen in the first place, they do because of pharmacist distraction, negligence, tiredness, and carelessness.

Take just one of these mistakes, such as putting the wrong information on a patient’s prescription label. When unsuspecting patients follow the wrong dosing instructions, they can suffer the consequences. Sadly, many children are victims of wrong prescription instructions, as their parents follow the directions—not knowing until it is too late that the label directions are incorrect.

When children take prescription drugs according to incorrect labeling directions, children may experience the following:

• Their illness may worsen
• Develop additional health problems
• Suffer new injuries
• Incur expensive medical bills
• Suffer disabling injuries or death

Children Can Suffer Due to Wrong Dosing Instructions

This is exactly what happened to one little girl in Georgia, according to her family’s lawsuit filed against an Abbeville pharmacy. The lawsuit alleges that wrong prescription label directions caused their four-year-old girl to take a dose of medication five times greater than what was prescribed—causing a severe seizure, unconsciousness, side effects and a hospital stay.

When an adult or child receives a prescription that is mislabeled with the incorrect information on it, it can cause serious harm. Unfortunately, this type of pharmacy mistake happens frequently due to the following:

• Pharmacists can misinterpret the prescription
• Pharmacists can incorrectly translate the prescription onto the label
• Pharmacists can make a typo

Who Is Liable When Harm Occurs From Incorrect Prescription Labels?

If the label on your child’s prescription is incorrect and has caused your son or daughter to suffer injuries, there may be many parties liable for your child’s damages, including:

• Pharmacist
• Pharmacy
• Doctor
• Hospital

Determining liability in your situation will depend on the specifics of your case. Overall, pharmacists have a duty to ensure that prescription drug labels reflect the correct drug name and instructions. If your child has been harmed as a result of wrong dosing instructions, contact an experienced children’s drug injury lawyer at Kennedy Hodges. Call 888.526.7616 today for a free initial consultation and free copy of our report, How to Make Pharmacies Pay for Injuries Caused by Medication Errors.