Medication Error in Nursing Homes – Lawsuit for Elder Abuse

Medication errors in nursing homes are a serious and ever-growing health threat to elderly patients.  Multiple studies have indicated that medication errors in nursing homes is a common occurrence, committed at an alarming rate of twenty-one percent of the time.  In fact, medication errors are one of, if not the most common form of medical malpractice in elderly care facilities, nursing homes, assisted living facilities and hospitals.  While often going unreported, our elderly patients are at elevated risks of serious injuries and death because of mistakes made by professionals and establishments who are entrusted with their care. The problem is highlighted by the fact that these elder care facilities simply do not have adequate and properly trained staff to properly monitor a continually aging population.  Furthermore, elderly patients are often unable to effectively monitor the types of drugs that are entering their bodies.

Please contact our elder abuse and nursing home neglect attorney if you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a medication error in a nursing home.

Most Common Types of Medication Errors in Nursing Homes

When people think of medication errors, the common perception is that a patient was given the wrong type of drug or product.  While administration of the wrong drug is common, this is only one of multiple types of medication errors in nursing homes.  In fact, the wrong medication accounts for less than five percent of medication errors in nursing homes. The most common types of medication errors in nursing homes are:

• Failure to administer drugs
• Overdose of drug
• Under dose of drug
• Drug has expired
• Drug was given at the wrong time
• Medication was given at the wrong interval
• Failure to properly monitor
• Error in labwork

Additionally, sometimes medication errors occur in how the drug is administered to the patient.  For example, sometimes a nurse fails to flush or properly clean the feeding tube resulting in a dangerous, or deadly combination of drugs.  Other times, the medications are not inserted in the proper location of the body. Furthermore, while medications might be given correctly, some types of drugs are incompatible with others.   Untrained or negligent health professionals have been known to mix these medications, which can also lead to injuries or death.

Causes of Medication Errors in Nursing Homes

While the rate of medication errors in nursing homes have actually decreased with the advent of sophisticated forms of technology, the problem continues to persist.  Even with these new technologies, by and large the largest cause of medication error in nursing homes is simple human error.  Obviously, there are many different types of human error such as forgetting to administer a drug, mixing health charts between different patients, or simply failing to read proper drug and administration procedure.  Either way, human error accounts for as much as sixty percent of all medication error in nursing homes and elder care facilities.

The Ultimate Guide to Nursing Home Neglect & Elder Abuse

– Nursing Home Neglect – Emotional Elder Abuse Attorney – Bed Sore Attorney | Elderly Neglect – Medication Error in Nursing Homes – What is Elder Abuse? – Nursing Home Slip and Fall Attorney – Elder Financial Abuse Attorney – Elder Abuse Neglect Laws Attorney – Residential Care Elderly Abuse Attorney – Who Can Sue For Elder Abuse? – Elder Abuse Wrongful Death Lawsuit – Elderly Medical Malpractice Attorney – Bed Sore Wrongful Death Lawsuit – Bed Sore Injury Attorney – Nursing Home Neglect – Different Stages of Bedsores – Hospital Bed Sore Lawsuit – Can a Hospital be Sued for Patient Neglect – Nursing home sexual assault – Infections in Nursing Homes – Nursing Home Heat Stroke Lawsuit Other types of medication errors include:

• Transcription error
• Failure to communicate properly between the health professionals
• Errors by the pharmacy
• Shift changes
• Improper labeling of the drug

What if patient is moved to a different nursing home or facility?

Many medication errors occur when patients are transferred from one facility to another.  This is known as errors in transition.  Medication errors are common when an elderly individual transitions between a home, hospital or other facility, as the patients themselves are unable, or unaware of the proper types of drugs. These facilities are responsible for the drugs being given to their patients.  Sometimes, both the old and new facility can be held responsible for the damages caused by medication errors.  If you have any questions regarding injuries to you or a loved one in a nursing home, please call our nursing home abuse attorney today.

Contact our Elder Abuse Attorney for Medication Errors

Injuries resulting from medication errors in nursing homes, elder care facilities and hospitals can be grave and often have fatal consequences.  For more help, or legal information regarding your rights, please contact a medication error medical malpractice lawyer at Downtown L.A. Law Group for a free case evaluation of your claim.