What Happens when your Pharmacy Gives YOU the WRONG Meds?

More than likely at some point in our life most Americans will require having a prescription filled. Medications are important and in some cases can make the difference in life or death...but what happens when your pharmacy gives you the wrong meds? For our family we've experienced this happening not once, or twice but a handful of times. Had my mother not checked her meds each time she comes home from the pharmacy and been taking this particular brand of medicine for her heart for over 5 years now, she may not have taken notice, but she pays attention to the appearance of the pill for a reason. At her local pharmacy which is located inside of a chain grocery store on Mahoning Ave in Austintown Ohio this has been done repeatedly. What is worse is that it's listed right on my mothers file in their computer that she has to take the brand name drug rather than the generic supplement as it makes her extremely ill and NOT to give her this particular brand.

My question to this pharmacy is simple; "What the hell are you doing?" Aren't instructions listed for reasons, or is it that they get so busy that they rush through the process and just don't care? My mother calls them and is quite nice about this. They are very lucky it is she that called and not I. My moms life is nothing to mess with and she is very important to me. This article is for those of you who are familiar with this situation because it has happened to you before. To those of you whom have never experienced this; be very grateful that it's never happened to you or a loved one.

Mistakes in the use of a medication are one of the best tracked types of medical error. Errors with medication can occur in hospitals, at the pharmacy, in the doctor's office, and even due to the patient. Problems can include adverse reactions and interactions with other medications, and also basic administrative errors such as patients being given the wrong medication or wrong dosage. A less studied aspect of mistakes involving medications is the misdiagnosis of a disease when the real cause is a side effect of a medication; see medications underlying disease.

From mixing up the names of drugs, to problems reading a doctor's handwriting, to pulling the wrong drug off the shelf, there are a number of ways your prescription can get mixed up at the pharmacy, resulting in medication errors for you.
 
Here are some ways to make sure you receive the right medication:

1. Be sure you have had a comprehensive conversation with your doctor about what is being prescribed, what the dosage is, how often you will take it, what it will look like and what you can expect from taking the drug.
2. If the doctor's office plans to phone in your prescription to the pharmacy, ask for a written copy, too. You'll want to review it with the staff to be sure it covers the same prescription your doctor has described. Once you get to the pharmacy, a written copy will help you confirm they are giving you the right drug.
3. Included in your review with the doctor should be questions about any abbreviations or acronyms the doctor uses on the written prescription. Between difficulty reading the doctor's handwriting, and the difficulty created by Latin and Greek based initials, it's easy to be confused.
4. Limit the number of pharmacies you do business with. You might try using one mail-order pharmacy for any drugs you take every day or on a regular basis over a long period of time. Choose a local pharmacy for any shorter0term drugs that you will only need for a few days or weeks. This way the records at the two pharmacies can easily be compared, saving you from a potential drug conflict or reaction.
5. You'll have an opportunity to discuss your prescription with your pharmacist, so be prepared for that conversation. Take your current medication and supplement list when you pick up your order. It will be an opportunity to double check the potential for problems with the pharmacist.
6. When you are offered the opportunity to speak to the pharmacist, take it. Ask the pharmacist to confirm what the drug is and why you are supposed to take it.
7. Usually your prescription will be handed to you, already bagged and ready to go. Before you leave the pharmacy, open the bag, and check to be sure your name is on the bottle or box. Then open the container and look at the drug and make sure it looks the way the doctor described it to you.
8. Read the label and make sure it says what you expect it will based on the information your doctor gave you. The label should bear your name, the name of the drug, the dosage, the frequency you take it, whether or not it should be taken with food or liquids (or not) and other pieces of information such as whether you will get drowsy or you should avoid alcohol.
9. If there are any discrepancies, ask to speak with the pharmacist. A discrepancy does not necessarily indicate a problem. For example, you may have been given a generic drug in place of a branded drug. In many states, that is expected and not unusual.
10. Ask the pharmacist about refills. If you'll need refills, what is the best way to request them, and how long will it take to get them? Do they have all of your allergies listed? You'll also want to know how long your new supply will last. Something to ponder,...it is important for you to be aware of pharmacy malpractice, its effects and what you can do to protect yourself. One very common form of pharmacy malpractice occurs when a patient receives the wrong dosage of a prescribed medication.

One last piece of advice, related to your cost. If there are questions about generics vs branded drugs, be sure you get what you pay for. Your copays for generic drugs should be less than those for a name brand drug. Ask the pharmacist or the technician to explain to you which one you are paying for. Then when you get your Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from your insurance company, it will make be easier to reconcile your billing.

Last but not least,...PLEASE, check your meds when you get home. If anything looks odd, call the pharmacy and your doctor right away and do not take this medicine. This is your life we're talking about. In my case this is my mothers life and my family would like to keep her around for years to come. This has certainly taught me a valuable lesson. I hear of this happening to others and have always thought to myself, "Wow, how terrible!" A few days ago I experienced this for myself first hand.