You pick up your prescription from the pharmacy, trusting that the medication inside is exactly what your doctor ordered. Three days later, you’re in the emergency room suffering from a severe allergic reaction. But when you try to hold someone accountable, both the doctor and pharmacist point fingers at each other.
The answer to who’s responsible depends on what went wrong. Here are four real-world scenarios that show how fault is determined in medication error cases.
1. The Deadly Drug Interaction
Scenario: Your cardiologist prescribes a new blood thinner without checking your current medications. You’re already taking an antidepressant that, when combined with the blood thinner, causes dangerous internal bleeding.
Who’s at fault: The doctor. Physicians have a duty to review all current medications before prescribing new ones. Failing to check for known drug interactions that result in serious harm constitutes medical malpractice.
2. The Wrong Medication Mix-Up
Scenario: Your doctor prescribes Celebrex for arthritis pain, but the pharmacy accidentally gives you Celexa, an antidepressant with a similar name. You take it for a week before experiencing severe side effects that land you in the hospital.
Who’s at fault: The pharmacist. Despite clear prescribing from the doctor, the pharmacy failed in their duty to dispense the correct medication.
3. The Illegible Prescription Disaster
Scenario: Your doctor’s handwriting is so poor that “10mg” looks like “100mg” on your prescription. The pharmacist fills the higher dose without questioning it, and you suffer an overdose that causes kidney damage.
Who’s at fault: Both parties may share responsibility. The doctor failed to write legibly, and the pharmacist failed to clarify an unclear prescription before dispensing a potentially dangerous dose. Ohio law allows you to pursue claims against both.
4. The Allergy Information Failure
Scenario: You tell your doctor about your penicillin allergy, but they prescribe amoxicillin anyway. The pharmacist has your allergy information on file but fills the prescription without checking, leading to a severe allergic reaction.
Who’s at fault: Both the doctor and pharmacist. The physician should never prescribe medications you’re allergic to, and the pharmacist should have caught this error as a final safety check.
Don’t Accept Finger-Pointing as an Answer
Healthcare providers often try to shift blame when medication errors cause serious harm. The reality is that both doctors and pharmacists have independent duties to protect patient safety. If you’ve been seriously injured by a medication error, the Law Offices of Tim Misny can help you determine who’s responsible and hold them accountable.
When healthcare negligence has damaged your health, I’ll Make Them Pay!® Call my office at (877) 944-4373 so that I can evaluate your medical malpractice case right away.
