Different Types of Pharmacy Errors
While most medication errors occur at the hospital or doctor’s office, pharmacy malpractice happens when pharmacists violate their duty of care to their patients. These errors can include:
- Providing the incorrect directions for use
- Failure to advise, including drug interactions or warnings
- Dispensing the wrong medication
- Failure to check for medication interactions
- Dispensing the wrong dosage
- Failure to check for allergies
These are just a few examples—any sort of negligence, carelessness, or even intention on the part of a pharmacy or pharmacist can result in injury to a patient. However, pharmacy malpractice can also extend to the pharmaceutical company or manufacturer.
What Are Defective Pharmaceuticals?
Defective drugs and pharmaceuticals, on the other hand, are medications or devices that were dangerous from the minute they left the manufacturer. They typically have adverse and serious side effects; side effects so severe and deadly that they outweigh the potential benefits of the drug. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) oversees drug safety and recalls in the United States.
Per the FDA, “A drug recall is the most effective way to protect the public from a defective or potentially harmful product. A recall is a voluntary action a company takes at any time to remove a defective drug product from the market.” They also maintain a list of drug alerts and statements on their website.
Just a sampling of some of the defective prescription drugs that have caused harm and injury to patients over the past few years includes:
- Truvada
- Nexium
- Zofran
- Actos
- Accutane
- Celebrex
- Fosamax
- Risperdal
- Depakote
- Invokana
- Onglyza
- Valsartan
Prescription medical devices can also be defective and cause injury to patients. Some of these include:
- Bair Hugger Forced Air warming blankets, which caused patients to develop staph infections
- Hip implants, like DePuy, which caused issues like metal poisoning, decreased mobility, and other injuries
- IVC filters, meant to mitigate blood clots, but migrated away in the body or fractured into pieces
- Transvaginal mesh, which caused infections, bleeding, and organ perforations in patients
The Kentucky attorneys at Wilt Injury Lawyers are here to advocate for your rights if you were injured by a defective medication or medical device. We are happy to discuss the specifics of your case in a free and personal consultation.
