Are you wondering whether you’re eligible to make a claim following medication errors by a pharmacy? If you have suffered harm due to being given the wrong medication in a pharmacy, then you may be able to make a medical negligence claim. We will explore the criteria your claim must meet in further detail throughout this guide.
Within this guide, we will explain what duty of care you are owed and how medication errors could occur.
Additionally, we aim to provide you with the information you need to make a claim for a medication error, as well as how much compensation you could potentially receive following a successful claim.
Whilst we have aimed to provide you with the information you need on medication errors in healthcare, we understand you may have further questions. As such, if you would like to talk to someone about your specific circumstances, our team of advisors are available to help you. You can contact them 24/7 for free legal advice regarding your potential claim.
Contact us today by:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7827
- Interacting with our live support feature.
- Filling out our online contact form.
Choose A Section
- What Are Medication Errors By A Pharmacy?
- Why Is Duty Of Care Important When Making Medication Error Claims?
- How Do Medication Errors By A Pharmacy Happen?
- Do I Need Evidence To Successfully Claim For Prescribing Errors In The UK?
- How Much Compensation Could I Get For Receiving The Wrong Medication?
- How Can No Win No Fee Solicitors Help?
- Learn More About Claiming For Medication Errors By A Pharmacy
What Are Medication Errors By A Pharmacy?
A medication error is a Patient Safety Incident (PSI) that can involve an error at any stage of prescribing, preparing, dispensing, monitoring or administration of medication. It can also occur when advice is given on medication.
There are various medical professionals who could make an error with medication, such as a prescribing nurse, a nurse practitioner, a doctor, a pharmacist or an anesthetist. Additionally, they can occur in different medical settings including a hospital, pharmacy or GP surgery.
However, to make a claim for medication errors by a pharmacy, you must prove that you suffered avoidable harm due to a medical professional breaching their duty of care. In the next section, we will discuss the duty of care a medically trained professional owes you.
Contact our advisors today if you would like more information on how to make a prescription error or other type of medication error claim.
Why Is Duty of Care Important When Making Medication Error Claims?
Medical professionals owe you a duty of care, regardless of whether they are private or public. As per their duty of care, they must provide all of their patients with the correct standard of care.
This can include assess what other medication you may currently be taking, before prescribing another type of medication to avoid an adverse drug reaction. Alternatively, it could include ensuring they check your medical history for allergies before administering you with a medication.
Pharmacists have a duty of care that includes ensuring they provide you with the correct medication, the correct dosage and the correct prescription.
To make a claim for medication errors by a pharmacy, you need to prove that you suffered harm due to medical negligence. This involves a medical professional breaching the duty of care they owed you and causing you avoidable harm.
Call us today for more information on how to make a medical negligence claim.
How Do Medication Errors By A Pharmacy Happen?
There are various ways that a medication error by a pharmacy could occur, such as:
- A pharmacist gives you the incorrect medication dosage, either too much or too little.
- Your local pharmacy gives you somebody else’s medication due to incorrect labelling.
- A pharmacist takes the wrong medication from the shelf and gives this to you instead of your actual prescription.
You could suffer various effects from a medication error. The impact it has had on your life can be considered when assessing how much compensation you could receive.
Contact our advisors today for more information on claims for medication errors by a pharmacy.
Do I Need Evidence To Successfully Claim For Prescribing Errors In The UK?
Evidence is vital to prove negligence occurred when making a claim for medication errors by a pharmacy. Potential evidence you could provide includes:
- Evidence of the medication error – This can include the name of the pharmacist, pharmacy and a copy of the prescription form.
- A copy of your medical records – This can state the effects you suffered due to the medication error and the impact this had on your health.
- Correspondence from the pharmacy about the complaint you have made.
- Bank statements proving any financial losses caused by the medication error.
Contact our team today for further information on potential evidence you could gather to help support your potential claim.
How Much Compensation Could I Get For Receiving The Wrong Medication?
When making a successful claim for medication errors by a pharmacy, you will receive general damages within your settlement. General damages seek to provide you with compensation for the physical and mental pain and suffering you have experienced due to the harm you sustained as a result of medical negligence.
We have created the following table using figures from the 16th edition of the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). We have used the figures listed in the JCG as it is a document many legal professionals use to help them value the general damages head of claim. How much compensation you receive will depend on your specific claim, so please only use this table as a guide.
| Injury | Comments | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Kidney | (a) Both kidneys have been lost or are permanently and seriously damaged. | £169,400 to £210,400 |
| Kidney | (b) Total loss of natural kidney function or a significant risk of a future urinary tract infection (UTI). | Up to £63,980 |
| Kidney | (c) One kidney is lost, but the other suffers no damage. | £30,770 to £44,880 |
| Digestive System | (b) Illness or damage resulting from a non-traumatic injury (i) Severe toxicosis resulting in several symptoms such as acute pain, vomiting and diarrhoea. | £38,430 to £52,500 |
| Digestive System | (b) (iv) Diarrhoea, disabling pain and cramps lasting for days or weeks. | £910 to £3,950 |
| Bowel | (b) Natural function is completely lost and the person will depend on a colostomy. | Up to £150,110 |
| Injuries Affecting Sight | (f) One eye has suffered incomplete vision loss. However, there is no serious risk of loss or reduction of vision in the remaining eye. | £23,680 to £39,340 |
| Deafness/Tinnitus | (d) Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (ii) - Moderate noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) and tinnitus or severe/moderate NIHL or tinnitus alone. | £14,900 to £29,710 |
| Spleen | (a) A continuing risk of internal infections due to the immune system being damaged following the loss of the spleen. | £20,800 to £26,290 |
| Spleen | (b) Minimal risk of internal infections. | £4,350 to £8,640 |
Pharmacy Medication Errors – What Other Compensation Could I Receive?
Additionally, you could also potentially receive special damages within your settlement.
Special damages seek to provide you with compensation for the financial losses you have accrued as a result of the harm you suffered due to medical negligence. This can include medical expenses, travel expenses, care costs and loss of earnings.
You will need to provide evidence of the financial losses, such as bank statements.
For more information on the compensation you could receive, get in touch on the number above.
How Can No Win No Fee Solicitors Help?
Our panel of solicitors may be able to help you with your medical negligence claim by offering a type of No Win No Fee service called a Conditional Fee Agreement.
With a CFA, you are not obligated to pay for your solicitor’s services if your claim fails. Alternatively, you will have to pay them a legally capped fee if your claim wins. Your solicitor will take this success fee from your compensation.
Call our advisors for more information on how a solicitor could help you when making a claim for medication errors by a pharmacy.
Contact Us For A Free Consultation Today
We understand that we have covered a lot of information within this guide and that you might still have questions. If so, you can contact our team of advisors today. Our advisors are available 24 hours a day to help answer any questions regarding your potential claim. Additionally, they can offer you some free legal advice.
Contact us today by:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7827
- Interacting with our live support feature.
- Filling out our online contact form.
Learn More About Claiming For Medication Errors By A Pharmacy
For more articles on medical negligence:
- Hospital-acquired infection compensation claims
- How to make a stroke misdiagnosis claim
- Botched liposuction surgery medical negligence claims
For external resources:
- NHS Resolution – Annual Statistics
- General Pharmaceutical Council – Standards For Pharmacy Professionals
- GOV – NHS constitution for England.
Call our advisors today for more information on claims following medication errors by a pharmacy.
Guide by NO
Editor NE