An Illinois family is suing Walgreens after they claim their five-year-old boy nearly died as a result of a pharmacy error. According to a recent report by NBC news, the child was supposed to receive a medication meant to treat allergies but instead received the wrong medication. Unfortunately, the family didn’t know the pharmacy gave them the wrong prescription until their son had to go to the hospital.
According to the boy’s parents, Ali Ahmed’s name was listed on the label of the medication they received at Walgreens. The prescription was labeled Haloperidol and it came in liquid form, which they trusted was supposed to treat his allergies. They indicated that after he received a dose of medicine, he slept for nearly two days straight.
His father told the media that when his son woke up to eat a cookie his neck flared. Paramedics were called, and they thought the boy was choking. While the neck flare subsided, Ali started acting strange and fainted just a few hours later. The family took their five-year-old to his doctor, who ordered them to get Ali to the hospital for treatment.
Later on the family found out that the medicine their son took was meant for an adult with the same name. As a result, their son was given an adult dose—a dangerously high dose for a child—of an antipsychotic drug. “We almost lost our son. Could you imagine if I had given him more dosage?” said Robin Ahmed, the boy’s father.
As a result of the trauma their son went through, they filed a lawsuit against Walgreens—accusing the pharmacy of negligence. Mr. and Mrs. Ahmed are afraid their son may suffer from long-term effects. A Walgreens spokesperson could not comment on pending litigation, but stated that, “We are sorry this occurred and we have apologized to the family.”