Orlando Medical Malpractice Attorneys for Victims of Prescribing the Wrong Medication or Wrong Dosage

When we are sick or injured, we count on medical professionals to prescribe medication to help cure what ails us and/or ease our pain. Most of the time, that is precisely what happens; however, you might often healthcare professionals prescribe the wrong type or dose of medication. A prescription error like this can lead to serious, even fatal, consequences for the patient.

If you or a family member has suffered because a healthcare professional prescribed the wrong medication or dosage, an experienced medical malpractice attorney can help you navigate the complex legal system to to hold the responsible parties accountable for their negligence and obtain the compensation you deserve.

At Bailey Fisher, we have more than half a century of combined successful legal experience both in and out of the courtroom, and we are committed to using that experience to fight for you and your rights.

Medical Errors and Medical Malpractice in Florida

Experts tell us that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States. Doctors and other healthcare professionals are human; they make mistakes just like the rest of us. Not all of their mistakes or errors are legally actionable. However, those that occur because of medical negligence do constitute malpractice under Florida state law.

In legal terms, medical negligence occurs when a doctor or other healthcare professional commits a breach of the “standard of care.” The “standard of care” essentially means what another medical expert practicing in the same field as the doctor who committed the alleged malpractice would have done under the same circumstances. This can be difficult to prove, as it requires you to locate an expert in the same field of medicine who agrees that the standard of care was breached.

Prescribing Errors

Most of us don’t think twice when we pick up a prescription or when a healthcare professional administers medication; however, the truth is that prescribing errors occur all the time. You could be the victim of a prescribing error under a number of different circumstances, including:

• Prescribing the wrong medication – A physician may prescribe the wrong type of medication, either as a result of an incorrect diagnosis or because he/she gave you a prescription intended for someone else.
• Causing dangerous drug interactions – A medication might be entirely harmless on its own; however, if the doctor prescribing it fails to check for interactions with other medications you take, that same medication could be dangerous.
• Prescribing the wrong dosage – If the dosage prescribed is too high or too low, an otherwise safe medication can become harmful.
• Incorrectly labeled medication – Your doctor might prescribe a perfectly safe medication; however, a labeling error at the pharmacy could result in your actually receiving a dangerous medication.
• Failure to warn about side effects – Some medications can be both helpful and harmful. A healthcare professional has a duty to warn a patient about the potential side effects of prescribed medication – particularly if those side effects are known to be potentially harmful.

Who Is at Fault for Orlando Prescribing Errors?

One of the most difficult aspects of medical error cases is determining who is at fault. All too often, more than one healthcare professional or entity potentially played a role in the error that led to the patient’s injuries or death. When the wrong medication was prescribed, or the wrong dosage was administered, liability for the error could lie with any of the following:

• A physician who prescribed the medication
• A hospital where the medication was prescribed
• A nurse or other healthcare professional who administered the medication
• The staff at the hospital or doctor’s office where the medication was input into a computer system
• The pharmacy staff that input or received the prescription
• The pharmacist who filled the prescription

Moreover, liability for prescribing the wrong medication or for administering the wrong dosage may be shared by more than one party. For example, a physician may initially order the wrong dosage for a hospital patient, but the nurse who administered the medication should also have recognized that the dosage was too high or too low under the circumstances.

One of the more important reasons to contact an experienced attorney when you believe you are the victim of a prescribing error is to ensure that all the responsible parties are held accountable for the injuries you suffered.

Contact Experienced Orlando Medical Malpractice Attorneys to Hold HealthCare Providers Accountable of Prescription Errors

If you or a family member has suffered because of a prescription error, you may be able to hold the negligent parties accountable for their error with a medical malpractice law suit. The experienced Orlando medical malpractice attorneys at Bailey Fisher have extensive experience helping victims of medical malpractice and are committed to getting you the compensation you deserve.

As a victim of medical malpractice, you may be entitled to compensation for both economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include compensation for those things for which you can provide tangible proof of the cost, such as medical bills, lost wages, and decreased earning capacity. Non-economic damages are subjective and cover the emotional trauma, pain, suffering, and diminished quality of life of victims and their families.

Contact the experienced Orlando medical malpractice attorneys at Bailey Fisher at 407-628-2929 or by submitting the form on our website to discuss how we can help you hold the responsible healthcare providers accountable for their error and obtain the compensation you deserve.