While we usually try to stay in our area with the stories we bring you, today we think it is necessary to highlight an incident out of Tennessee that is unfolding right now. What we know is that late last year, a patient at Vanderbilt University Medical Center was set to receive a routine sedative from a nurse.
Unfortunately, that is not what happened. Instead, the nurse administered a drug called vecuronium.
The person who received this drug instead of their sedative quickly lost consciousness and went into cardiac arrest. Though the patient was revived, they were brain dead and taken off of life support the next day. As bad as this sounds, it gets worse. It appears the medical center attempted to cover the mistake up by not telling the medical examiner’s offer the real cause of death. An investigation is currently underway.
At The Weitz Firm, LLC, we deal with medical malpractice and wrongful death cases all the time and we know this is quite the cover-up. We also know that there are many other mistakes that are not fatal that cause long-lasting consequences for patients.
When you need a Philadelphia medications error attorney, you can call us today.
As we examine where and why medication errors occur, we want to zero in on two places – the hospital and a patient’s home. This is because many people only think about getting harmed while in direct care of a healthcare professional when, in reality, many people are experiencing errors in their prescriptions after discharge.
We know that medication errors harm an estimated 1.5 million people each year. This can cause a lengthening of a person’s hospital stay, an increase in their medical costs, and an increased likelihood of death. Medication mistakes lead to more than 7,000 deaths annually.
There is a three-tiered process for medication dispensing in the hospital: a practitioner orders a medication, the pharmacist fills it, and a nurse gives it to the patient. While a pharmacist can catch a practitioner’s mistake and a nurse can catch a pharmacist’s mistake, who is there to catch a nurse’s mistake?
We know that up to 30 percent of patients have at least one medication discrepancy upon discharge from the hospital. Doctors need to thoroughly check a patient’s medical history and med list before discharge so that they do not prescribe medications that interact negatively with something a patient is already taking. They also need to ensure that the patient knows how to take the medication as well as the correct dosage.
We know that the last thing you expect when you or a loved one go in for a medical procedure is to end up in worse shape due to an error with the medications you receive. Unfortunately, these incidents happen. At The Weitz Firm, LLC, we are here to help.
Our knowledgeable and experienced team will work tirelessly to secure the compensation you need for all of your incident-related expenses, from medical costs and lost wages to pain and suffering damages. When you need a Philadelphia medications error attorney, you can contact us for a free consultation by clicking here or calling 267-587-6240.
