Every day in the UK, thousands of prescriptions are prescribed for patients by medical professionals as part of the healthcare service. Unfortunately, while most patients receive the correct prescription that they needed, there are those that suffer as a result of prescription errors made by healthcare professionals.

Medical professionals, such as Doctors and Pharmacists, have a duty of care towards their patients and must ensure that they are providing their patients with the correct information required and dosage amounts, as well as taking into account any allergies or health requirements that their patients have.

Prescription errors can have incredibly serious consequences for those affected, including physical and mental disabilities and, in some circumstances, even fatality. If you have suffered as a result of a prescription error, you may be eligible to make a clinical negligence claim. Contact Wildwood Legal today to get in touch with our medical negligence solicitors for more guidance on the claims process and potentially start a claim for compensation.

 

Common causes of prescription errors

 

If you have been harmed due to a prescription error, you may be able to pursue a medical negligence claim. The most common causes of prescription errors we see include:

 

· Incorrect medication prescribed to a patient by a medical professional

· Unsupervised repeat prescription

· Incorrect dosage amounts

· Incorrect labelling by the pharmacist

· The Patient was not made aware of much medication to take

· Incorrect spelling by the healthcare professional, which resulted in the wrong medicine being prescribed

· The Healthcare professional prescribed medication to a patient that they did not require

 

These causes of prescription errors can result in a variety of complications, including the following:

 

· Allergic reactions if the medication contains something that the patient is allergic to

· Digestive issues, such as stomach bleeding and stomach ulcers

· Loss of sight and blindness

· Psychological illnesses

· Complications can lead to brain damage

· Fatalities in severe circumstances

 

If you have suffered as a result of any of the causes above, you may be eligible to make a prescription error compensation claim.

 

Time limits for making a prescription error claim

 

Prescription error claims are similar to most other medical negligence claims. The general rule is that you have three years from the date of the accident to have either settled your claim or started court proceedings where the injury occurred.

The three-year deadline commences from the date that the injury happened or from the date on which you realised that your injury or illness was associated with the prescription error.

The three-year time limit for claiming compensation does not apply to those under 18; however, it will come into effect after their 18th birthday. There is also no time limit for individuals that lack the mental capacity to make a claim themselves.

 

How are prescription error claims calculated?

 

Compensation for prescription error claims are made up of two areas, general damages and special damages.

 

General damages cover physical injuries; these damages take the severity of your injuries into consideration, as the more severe your injuries are, the higher the compensation levels are likely to be. If you have been left injured or disabled as a direct result of medical malpractice, this would be covered by general damages.

 

Special damages cover the financial impact the medical negligence had. This includes loss of earnings which will depend on the severity of your injuries and the type of job that you do. Special damages also cover any care that you may need. For example, if you suffered health complications due to negligence, the court would likely reward you with compensation to cover the financial implications of this in the future.

 

If the Defendant admits liability for your case, you may also be able to receive an interim payment, meaning that you could receive a part-payment of compensation during litigation. These payments are made by the other side before a case is settled in order to aid you to fund a number of vital things, such as assistance in daily living or urgent medical care.

 

How much do prescription error claims cost?

 

We will always be 100% transparent about what our charges are; if we take on your medical negligence claim, we will almost always do so on a no win no fee basis (also known as a conditional agreement).

This means that if you do not win your case, you do not pay us any fees at all. If we win the case, we take a small percentage of your compensation awarded, which we will agree with you beforehand, to cover our costs.

We will never ask you to sign anything until you are completely happy with what it is that we are proposing.

 

How can Wildwood Legal assist?

 

At Wildwood Legal, we know that the consequences of medical negligence can be devastating. If you have suffered from this, you need to seek legal advice – That’s where we come in.

We see all too often the significant effect that negligence can have on people’s lives. We can help on the financial side to get you on the road to recovery and help you to maximise the amount of compensation you receive.

When you are treated by a medical professional, you expect to receive the best possible care. Therefore, when this does not happen, it can feel as though you have been betrayed.

Our core strength is in personal injury claims and medical negligence claims. We are experienced in helping you with any negligence claims that you may want to make. We aim to give you not only quality aid but flexibility and clarity as we know that these qualities are just as important.

Our law firm is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority; therefore, we provide everything that is needed to meet their high standards meaning that we are a trusted law firm. We offer services to individuals located in England and Wales. To make an enquiry to start a claim, get in contact with us either email us info@winstonsolicitors.co.uk or call us 0113 320 5000.