Columbia Medication Errors Lawyer
Oral rehydration—the simple formula of sugar, salt, and water—was hailed as one of the greatest medical advances in the world, and is estimated to save half a million lives (mostly of dehydrated children suffering from diarrhea) a year, according to research in the National Library of Medicine. More advanced medications, such as cancer therapies and blood thinners, let patients live an extra decade, or six, when they would have otherwise perished. But just as medications save lives, they can also cause serious side effects or death if they are not administered properly. If the negligence of a doctor, nurse, pharmacist, or other hospital worker caused injury to you or a loved one by giving the wrong dose or type of medication, you have the option to pursue a medical malpractice lawsuit to seek damages from the at-fault party. The Columbia medication error lawyers at Simmons Law Firm have handled countless cases of negligent medication, and have assisted victims and their families in recovering pain and suffering damages, lost earnings, medical expenses, and more.
A Medical Worker’s Duty of Care
It is impossible to attach an accurate value on a medication that saves a patient’s life. A simple round of generic antibiotics, which costs about $45, has helped countless people recover from lacerations, dental infections, surgery, puncture wounds, and animal bites. Yet, in the wrong dose, some types of medication are fatal. In other cases, a hospital patient or outpatient may be given the wrong medication, or given two types of medication that should never be taken together. Medical professionals, including doctors, surgeons, nurses, pharmacists, and other hospital staff have an obligation to their patients to provide a specific standard of care during treatment. If this obligation is violated, the medical institution or party can be held liable for the victim’s damages, even if the medication error was a simple mistake. Healthcare professionals and hospitals are protected by large medical insurance policies, which you and your attorney will be pursuing during the malpractice claim.
Our Attorneys Handle a Wide Variety of Medication Error Claims
Medication errors can cause everything from stroke, heart attack, and brain injury to coma, organ failure, and death. Because of the dangers that prescription drugs pose, healthcare professionals have a duty to carefully prescribe and administer these drugs, especially to elderly, sick, injured, or otherwise vulnerable patients. According to research, medication errors harm 1.5 million Americans each year. These errors are caused in the following ways:
- Prescribed or given the wrong medication;
- Prescribed or given the wrong dose;
- Failure to ask the patient about known drug allergies;
- Failure to screen for certain drugs that should not be taken together;
- Failure to monitor patients after administering medication; and
- Failure to notice signs of an adverse drug reaction after administering the medication.
Call Our Columbia Medication Error Attorneys Today
If you were injured, or a loved one died, because of a healthcare professional’s negligence, you have the right to pursue compensation. To get started today, call Simmons Law Firm Columbia medication error attorneys at 803-779-4600 to schedule a free consultation.
