Wellbeing Pharmacy Prescription Error Claims Guide
This guide provides useful information about medical negligence claims for prescription errors. We will explain the specific criteria your case must meet to be eligible for a medical negligence claim if a Wellbeing Pharmacy prescription error were to occur and you believe you have suffered unnecessary harm.
We also give some illustrative examples of how dispensing errors could occur within a pharmacy and the various forms of harm this could cause a patient to suffer. Additionally, we include examples of evidence that could be used to help support your case.
Furthermore, this guide will discuss the different forms of compensation you could be awarded for a successful medical negligence claim and the types of harm they address. Lastly, we focus on how one of our medical negligence solicitors could help you with claiming compensation for a medication error on a No Win No Fee basis.
If you have any questions regarding how to make a prescription error claim after finishing this guide, you can get in touch with our team of advisors. They can also assess the eligibility of your case and provide you with free advice. To connect with them today, you can:
- Call 0800 073 8804
- Ask about your possible claim online through our web form.
- Use our live chat feature below to start a conversation.
Select A Section
- What Could A Wellbeing Pharmacy Prescription Error Be?
- Types Of Errors In Dispensing Prescriptions
- What Do I Need To Claim If A Pharmacy Gives Me The Wrong Medication?
- Compensation For Pharmacy Negligence
- Contact Us About A Wellbeing Pharmacy Prescription Error
- Learn More About Claiming For Medical Negligence
What Could A Wellbeing Pharmacy Prescription Error Be?
As a medical professional, a pharmacist owes a duty of care to patients. This means that they must adhere to the correct standard of care at all times to ensure patient safety. Additionally, the Standards for Pharmacy Professionals that pharmacists are expected to uphold and maintain to ensure patient and medication safety is set out by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC).
Per their duty of care, pharmacists should take care to prevent errors and ensure patients receive the medications prescribed by doctors. Medication errors can significantly impact patients, so following the correct medical practice is vital.
Should a pharmacist fail to provide a patient with the correct standard of care and service, this could cause the patient to suffer harm that could have otherwise been avoided.
In order to make a medical negligence claim for a prescription error, you would have to satisfy the following conditions:
- A pharmacist owed you a duty of care.
- They did not meet the correct standard of care and breached their duty.
- As a direct result of this breach, you suffered harm that could have otherwise been avoided.
You must meet all these criteria to make a medical negligence claim, as these form the legal basis of medical negligence.
Is There A Set Time To Make A Claim?
It’s important to ensure your prescription error claim begins before the legal deadline. The Limitation Act 1980 sets out a three-year time limit for starting a medical negligence claim.
This limitation period may start from when the pharmacy error caused you avoidable harm or from the date you first learned that you suffered unnecessary pain because a pharmacist breached their duty of care. This is also referred to as the date of knowledge.
Exceptions may apply to this time limit in cases involving minors or those lacking the mental capacity to handle their own legal proceedings.
If you would like to discuss these time limit exceptions or to see if you are still within the limitation period to begin your claim, you can contact a member of our advisory team.
Types Of Errors In Dispensing Prescriptions
Dispensing errors may happen in different ways. Below, we have listed some examples of how dispensing errors may occur within a pharmacy:
- A labelling error means the pharmacist mixes up medications and gives them to the wrong patient, meaning the patient receives the wrong drug.
- A pharmacist puts the incorrect information on the dosage they should take, meaning that the patient suffers an overdose.
- A calculation error means the patient is given too much medicine.
- A pharmacist failed to confirm whether you were the correct patient, meaning you received another patient’s medication. This medication contains something you are allergic to.
The Impact Of Prescription Errors
Since drugs can cause certain changes to the body or have specific side effects, taking the wrong dosage or the wrong medication could cause you to suffer various effects.
Some possible effects of a medication error could include:
- Being unable to feel the intended effects at all, due to getting the wrong dosage. This may allow an existing condition to worsen or a serious illness to spread.
- Other adverse reactions, such as rashes, due to the side effects of taking the incorrect medication.
- A severe reaction caused by an allergen, such as anaphylactic shock.
- An overdose that could inflict serious harm to internal organs.
You can contact a friendly member of our advisory team to learn whether you have an eligible claim if a Wellbeing Pharmacy prescription error takes place that causes you to suffer harm.
What Do I Need To Claim If A Pharmacy Gives Me The Wrong Medication
The first and most important thing to do if you are affected by a pharmacist making a prescription error is to get any medical advice and attention you need. It is important to note that not all cases of medication errors could lead to a medical negligence claim. To be able to prove medical negligence occurred in your case, you will need to present sufficient evidence. This could include:
- A copy of your prescription form and the container the prescription was given to you in.
- Your medical records that detail the extent of the harm you suffered following the prescription error and what treatment you needed to receive.
- A diary of your symptoms and how they have impacted your life.
- Records that detail the pharmacist that served you, what they gave you and the instructions they provided.
- The contact details of any witnesses. They could be approached at a later date to provide a statement.
If you choose to work with one, a medical negligence solicitor could help you with gathering evidence to support your claim. To see whether one of our expert solicitors could help you through the claiming process, you can contact our team of advisors. Additionally, they can provide you with further information on the potential steps you could take should a Wellbeing Pharmacy prescription error occur that you believe has caused you to suffer harm.
Compensation For Pharmacy Negligence
If you make a successful medical negligence claim for a prescription error, your compensation could address up to two different forms of loss.
General damages compensate you for the harm you expereinced due to a pharmacist failing to adhere to the correct standard of care. This head of loss is awarded in all successful medical negligence claims.
Those responsible for calculating this compensation may refer to the guideline compensation brackets found in the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). They may also refer to any medical evidence that has been submitted to consider the extent of your suffering.
Compensation Table
All entries, except for the top row, have been created using the JCG’s compensation guidelines. Please note that this could be used as an alternative to a medical negligence claims calculator. This is only for guidance.
| INJURY | SEVERITY | COMPENSATION | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Forms Of Severe Harm Plus Costs and Losses | Very Severe | Up to £250,000+ | A payout that addresses multiple severe forms of harm suffered. Additionally, compensation is given for financial loss, such as missing out on work earnings, travel costs and medical expenses. |
| Brain | Moderately Severe | £219,070 to £282,010 | The impacted person is very seriously disabled and depend on others for care. What degree of dependence is required will affect the level of award, alongside other factors. |
| Kidney | Loss of Both Kidneys | £169,400 to £210,400 | Either two kidneys are lost or they are permanently and seriously damaged. |
| Loss of One Kidney | £30,770 to £44,880 | The other sustains no damage. | |
| Bladder | Double Incontinence | Up to £184,200 | Double incontinence refers to total loss of natural bowel function and the complete loss of urinary control and function. This will be combined with other medical complications. |
| Serious Impairment of Control | £63,980 to £79,930 | Control is seriously impaired. The patient also experiences some pain and incontinence. | |
| Bowels | Total Loss of Natural Function | Up to £150,110 | Natural function is completely removed. There may be a need for colostomy, depending on the patient's age. |
| Faecal Urgency | In the region of £79,920 | Passive incontinence, alongside faecal urgency, continue post-surgery and cause distress as well as embarrassment. | |
| Digestive System | Illness/Damage Resulting from Non-Traumatic Injury (i) | £38,430 to £52,500 | Serious acute pain, diarrhoea, fever and vomiting caused by severe toxicosis, leading to days or weeks in hospital. |
Special Damages
Payouts for prescription error claims can also include special damages compensation. This head of loss compensates you for the financial implications the medical negligence caused you to experience. You could claim for the likes of:
- Lost earnings caused by being unable to work.
- Medical bills, such as paying for a new prescription to replace the incorrect one.
- Travel expenses to and from medical appointments.
You will need to present evidence of these losses in order to receive compensation for them under special damages as part of your pharmacy claim. This could include payslips, bank statements and invoices.
To learn what else you can claim for, and how much compensation you might be entitled to if you make a successful prescription error claim, please give us a call today.
Contact Us About A Wellbeing Pharmacy Prescription Error
Should a potential Wellbeing Pharmacy prescription error occur and this lead to you suffering what you believe is avoidable harm, you can contact our advisors at any time to see what your legal options could be. They will provide a free case assessment. If they deem your claim to be valid, they may also put you in contact with one of our expert medical negligence solicitors.
Additionally, our solicitors generally offer their services to their clients through a Conditional Fee Agreement. When claiming with a solicitor under this particular No Win No Fee arrangement, you are not expected to pay for their work:
- Upfront.
- As the claim goes on.
- At all if the case fails.
Successful medical negligence claims lead to the claimant collecting compensation. Their solicitor will take a small percentage of this as their success fee. The law legally limits the maximum percentage that can be taken as this fee.
Claim For A Prescription Error Today
To see whether you may be able to claim compensation for the unnecessary harm you have suffered following a prescription error, you can contact our team of advisors. They can assess the eligibility of your case and potentially connect you with one of our No Win No Fee solicitors.
To connect with our team today, you can:
- Call 0800 073 8804
- Use our ‘claim online’ query form.
- Send a message through the live support feature.
Learn More About Claiming For Medical Negligence
Here are some more medical negligence claims guides by us:
- Guidance on finding the best medical negligence solicitors for you to help you on a No Win No Fee basis.
- Information on prescription errors in hospital and how to claim compensation for a mistake made when prescribing medicine.
- Our penicillin medication error guide explains how compensation can be claimed for this particular error.
These sites may also contain useful information for you:
- For further information on Wellbeing Pharmacies Limited, go to the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC) website.
- Use the Online Registry of Pharmacists to find a pharmacist and check that they are licensed.
- NHS information about pharmacies and where to find your nearest one.
Thank you for reading our guide about the options you have should a potential Wellbeing Pharmacy prescription error occur and you believe that this has caused you harm, you can contact our advisory team for further information.
