Harmed by a Medication Meant to Heal You? Get Help from a Texas Medication Error Lawsuit Attorney.
If you’ve been injured by a prescription drug, you might be able to file a medication error lawsuit. Doctors, pharmacists and other healthcare workers who prescribe, administer and fill medications sometimes make mistakes. They may be held responsible if they make errors that hurt patients.
Most medical professionals try to do a good job. But in our overworked and overburdened healthcare system, it isn’t unusual for mistakes to happen. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration receives over 100,000 reports every year about medication errors in this country. These errors not only involve prescription drugs, but they can also involve over-the-counter medications given by healthcare providers.
If a healthcare worker’s mistake affects your health and well-being, you have the right to pursue compensation for your injuries and losses. Our Houston medical malpractice attorneys can review your case and advise you about your claim options. If you’ve been hurt by a drug error, you are not alone. Our skilled lawyers are here to answer your questions and address your important concerns. Call the accident and injury law office of Terry Bryant at (713) 973-8888 for a free consultation.
Healthcare providers should heal, not harm patients. You can count on us to
stand up for you when you are the victim of a medication error.
Types of Injuries Caused by Medication Errors
Medication errors can cause a variety of serious and life-threatening injuries. Just some of the injuries that can result from medication errors include:
- Allergic reactions
- Diarrhea and vomiting
- High blood pressure
- Difficulty breathing
- Brain damage
- Organ failure
- Seizures
- Loss of consciousness
- Coma
- Birth defects.
In the most severe cases, medication errors can even result in death. If you’ve been harmed by a medication error, you have rights. You can ask for compensation from the person who injured you through a legal claim. If someone has died as the result of a negligent medication error, family members may be able to bring a wrongful death lawsuit.
Doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, pharmacists and other medical professionals have a duty to exercise care when giving patients drugs. Unfortunately, when care isn’t taken and mistakes occur, it is innocent patients like you who suffer the consequences of their healthcare providers’ careless negligence. But you don’t have to suffer in silence. We are here to help you.
If you’ve been injured because of a medication error by a doctor, hospital, pharmacist, nurse or other healthcare provider, contact our medical malpractice attorneys today to schedule a free consultation. Call us at (713) 973-8888.
Damages You Might Be Able to Get with the Help of a Medication Error Attorney
When you’ve been injured due to a medication error, you may be able to get compensation for damages such as:
- Current and future medical costs for doctor visits, hospitalization and emergency care
- Therapy and rehabilitation costs to recover from your injuries
- Lost wages from missing time at work
- Future loss of income if you can no longer work for an extended period of time or at all
- Long-term physical pain and suffering
- Mental and emotional anguish.
In order to collect money through a lawsuit, you must prove that the healthcare worker who made the medication error was negligent. Proving negligence against doctors, pharmacists and other healthcare workers is not an easy thing to do. You will need to show a direct link between the drug error and how it caused your injury. Depending on the type of error and the circumstances of your injury, this can include showing things such as …
- You carefully followed your doctor’s instructions about how and when to take the drug.
- You weren’t told about the drug’s dangerous side effects.
- Your doctor didn’t consider other medications you were taking that could cause harmful interactions.
- The drug you were given by the pharmacy was not the drug your doctor prescribed.
- The wrong drug was administered to you, or the dosage given was too low or too high.
Most people who are victims of medication errors don’t know how to take on the powerful healthcare system and its insurance companies. Successfully winning a drug error lawsuit can be complicated. A skilled lawyer can help.
Our medical malpractice attorneys at Houston’s the accident and injury law office of Terry Bryant have extensive experience standing up for clients against negligent doctors, hospitals and Big Pharma. We can help you too. Call our law firm at (713) 973-8888 for assistance.
How Medication Errors Happen
Drug errors happen in doctors’ and dentists’ offices, hospitals, walk-in clinics and pharmacies. They can happen at any step in the process of prescribing and administering drugs. But exactly how do they happen?
Here are some examples of ways that harmful medication errors happen:
- Poor or illegible handwriting on prescriptions
- Poor communication between healthcare providers or between doctors and patients
- Distractions and interruptions in overcrowded hospitals and doctors’ offices
- Misdiagnoses of conditions that lead to the wrong drug’s being prescribed
- Improper training of medical personnel
- Inadequate knowledge about medications being prescribed
- Poor procedures in place in medical settings
- Inaccurate or incomplete patient records.
How a Pharmacy Error Attorney Can Help
While doctors and hospitals are responsible for many medication errors, pharmacies can also make mistakes. A pharmacist might mislabel a drug they are dispensing. Or a pharmacist might not recognize a dosage mistake or other error on a prescription. They might also not take the time to check with the doctor if they cannot read the handwriting on a prescription. They might instead take their “best guess” at what is written. Sometimes when drugs have names that sound or look the same, the pharmacist might dispense the wrong one. Taking the wrong drug can lead to grave danger for patients.
If you were injured by a pharmacy for any of these reasons, or because of another reason, a pharmacy error attorney can help. We will examine how the pharmacy was negligent in filling your prescription. Call our skilled Houston law firm for a free consultation about your medication error injury. We can be reached today at (713) 973-8888 or through our online form.
No matter what type of healthcare provider negligently injured you, you can rely on us to work hard toward getting you the compensation you deserve. We will review all the evidence in your case and advise you of your legal options.
Doctors and Pharmacists Owe a Duty to Their Patients
Nobody should be put at risk because of a drug error. Before prescribing or administering medications, doctors should carefully weigh the benefits of a drug compared to its risks. They should also be sure they know what other medicines a patient is using. If they know what else a patient is using, they can make sure there are no dangerous interactions. Communication with patients is also key. Patients should be clearly told about a drug’s risks and side effects.
Likewise, pharmacists must ensure they clearly understand what doctors have written. Then they must take the time and care to be sure prescriptions are filled with the correct medicines and the correct dosages. They must be careful that label instructions are correctly typed.
When these steps are not properly taken, it can add up to negligence by a doctor, pharmacist or other healthcare worker. If you have been a victim of medical negligence, our seasoned medical malpractice attorneys in Texas will fight for your interests. Contact our law firm for a free consultation by calling (713) 973-8888 or fill out our online form.
Trying to Protect Yourself from Negligent Medication Errors
You shouldn’t have to worry about the safety of the drugs you are taking. After all, they were prescribed by your doctor and filled by a trained pharmacist. However, this isn’t always the case. Sometimes you do have to worry.
Consumers can try to help ensure their own safety by …
- Not being afraid to ask questions about drug side effects and other issues. Don’t let a doctor intimidate you into not asking questions.
- Making sure your doctor tells you the names of medications they prescribe and exactly what they are for.
- Ensuring you understand the directions for taking the drug. Don’t let a busy pharmacist hurry through their explanation.
- Be sure your doctor or pharmacist explains any potential drug or food interactions.
Medical professionals are not immune to making mistakes. When a medication error affects your health, you have the right to pursue compensation. After all, if the doctor, pharmacist or other provider had not been careless, you would not be facing expensive medical bills, lost time at work, painful injuries and other financial and health concerns.
Get Help from an Experienced Prescription Error Lawyer
If you are injured due to a medication error, it’s important to remember that it’s not your fault. You are not a medical professional and are not responsible for knowing whether a drug might harm you. A prescription error lawyer from the accident and injury law office of Terry Bryant in Houston can help you understand your rights. Contact our medical malpractice attorneys today at 713-973-8888 for a free, no-obligation, consultation.
Attorney Terry Bryant
Terry Bryant is Board Certified in personal injury trial law, which means his extensive knowledge of the law has been recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, setting him apart from many other injury attorneys. The 22 years he spent as a Municipal Judge, Spring Valley Village, TX also provides him keen insight into the Texas court system. That experience also helps shape his perspective on personal injury cases and how they might resolve. This unique insight benefits his clients. [ Attorney Bio ]