According to a report by the Institute of Medicine, more than 98,000 people die each year from medical errors. Further, medication errors are one of the most common types of medical errors and will continue to be so as more and more medications become available for patient use. 

Medication errors can potentially cause significant damage to a patient’s body, leading to additional treatments, surgeries, or even death. Doctors, nurses, pharmacists or other healthcare officials can make mistakes when administering medications in various ways, including:

• Dispensing the wrong medication.
• Inaccurately labeling medication.
• Not warning the patient of the potential side effects of the medication.
• Administering a higher or lower dosage of medication than required.
• Prescribing medication that has a negative reaction to medications the patient is already on.
• Prescribing or administering medication to which a patient is allergic.

What Causes Medication Errors?

Medication errors are common in general practice and in hospitals. They can occur during the ordering, prescribing, dispensing, administering or monitoring of drugs.

Medical incompetence can also be a contributing factor to medication errors. An undisciplined working environment, complex or undefined procedures, and poor communication among medical professionals can contribute to prescription errors and prescribing faults. 

Legal Elements in A Medical Malpractice Case

So, what happens when a healthcare professional orders, prescribes, dispenses, administers or monitors medications incorrectly, and it seriously harms the patient? Medication errors can be considered medical malpractice, which is professional negligence, if the following legal elements can be proven:

• The medical professional owed you a duty of care.
• The duty of care was breached.
• The breach was the cause of the injury.
• The injury is compensable.

If you have a medical malpractice case, an Orlando or Fort Lauderdale lawyer at Haliczer Pettis & Schwamm may counsel you to sue for damages. The types of damages to which you might be entitled could be as follows:

• Economic damages – These include lost wages, your medical and rehabilitation fees, home help, and other out-of-pocket expenses.
• Non-economic damages – These are subjective damages, which can include pain and suffering, emotional distress and loss of companionship (when an immediate family member is injured or dies).
• Punitive damages – These are very rare cases where the doctor engaged in particularly egregious care or behavior. 

If you seek to bring a medical malpractice case in Florida, you must act quickly. This is because you only have two years from the date of injury, or from the date you should have learned of the injury, to bring your claim. 

Florida medical malpractice cases are also complicated because your legal team must receive a medical expert’s official opinion in each of the medical fields that were involved in your care before you bring a lawsuit. Haliczer Pettis & Schwamm has relationships with dozens of experts in almost every field of medicine. For example, we can go to our database and have several toxicologists to choose from who will help us prepare your case. 

Injured By a Medication Error? Let Haliczer, Pettis & Schwamm Help

Medical malpractice is a sensitive and complicated area of personal injury law. At Haliczer, Pettis & Schwamm, we have decades of experience successfully guiding our clients through their medical malpractice claims. If you think that you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice, don’t hesitate to contact us as soon as possible.