Dispensing errors compensation for patients

[algie]

Hi, I am a pharmacy student and currently working as a part-time dispenser in a community pharmacy. I am quite new in dispensing and dispensing errors happenned... and it has been twice (in 4 months), my pharmacists missed them too.

This time, I got a script of 6 items and one of them is 2x28 Istin. I didnt know how i missed it and i dispensed 1x28 (maybe because i only print out 1x28 label and dispense against the labels). Later, when the patient get it, she called up and worried nothing else but "this is your error. Now what you can do for me? This is serious, do you know what will happen to me because of your error??" I apologize and asked her if she could come to collect the other box... she said "I lived 3 miles away! Do you know how inconvenient it is to me! etc..."

And the other time, I dispensed telmisartan 80mg instead of 20mg. The dosage is 1 tablet daily. The patient came back 3 days later complaining of the error and claimed that she had taken 5 of them... she sounds less concerning about her health and keeps on demanding that it was our fault and should do something about it...

So... i heard about these compensation thingy that most community pharmacies do... how does it works? Does it means that the company is bribing the patient to keep quiet? I never wanted to ask my colleagues because i felt guilty enough to say nothing but sorry... Sometimes, i felt like i'm being blackmailed by these patients. Can somebody tell me more about this?

[Pharmanaut]

Hi, I am a pharmacy student and currently working as a part-time dispenser in a community pharmacy. I am quite new in dispensing and dispensing errors happenned... and it has been twice (in 4 months), my pharmacists missed them too.

This time, I got a script of 6 items and one of them is 2x28 Istin. I didnt know how i missed it and i dispensed 1x28 (maybe because i only print out 1x28 label and dispense against the labels). Later, when the patient get it, she called up and worried nothing else but "this is your error. Now what you can do for me? This is serious, do you know what will happen to me because of your error??" I apologize and asked her if she could come to collect the other box... she said "I lived 3 miles away! Do you know how inconvenient it is to me! etc..."

And the other time, I dispensed telmisartan 80mg instead of 20mg. The dosage is 1 tablet daily. The patient came back 3 days later complaining of the error and claimed that she had taken 5 of them... she sounds less concerning about her health and keeps on demanding that it was our fault and should do something about it...

So... i heard about these compensation thingy that most community pharmacies do... how does it works? Does it means that the company is bribing the patient to keep quiet? I never wanted to ask my colleagues because i felt guilty enough to say nothing but sorry... Sometimes, i felt like i'm being blackmailed by these patients. Can somebody tell me more about this?

See the guidance at...
http://www.rpsgb.org/pdfs/restooldealdisperr.pdf

Have a look at the checking technician training on how to check scripts it will help you to develop your own 'radar'.

[johnep]

There is a welsh solicitor who advertises on net for people who have had a dispensing error. Sorry forgotten link but google will find.
One reason Lloyds have such powerful glue on their labels to stop pts transposing them and claiming an error.
johnep

[Pharmanaut]

There is a welsh solicitor who advertises on net for people who have had a dispensing error. Sorry forgotten link but google will find.
One reason Lloyds have such powerful glue on their labels to stop pts transposing them and claiming an error.
johnep

One day everything will have to be tamper proof to prevent this.

[Web Ferret]

Error 1 is inconvenience - no harm done.
Record the incident apologize and make all reasonable attempts to put right - Delivering the istin if necessary. In law there is no compensation for what might have happened.

Error 2 is a bit more serious, again good practice (if not vital!) to log details. Your company should have a procedure for recording errors and dealing with complaints - if it doesn't then they need to write one. Do all you can to rectify the problem - swap to correct tablets and inform the GP of the error.

If someone then wants to make a bigger deal if it then pass this onto your line manager, I can't see it going any further. I have never heard of anyone bunging a few ££ and this is only likely to make matters worse.
All pharmacies must have insurance and I would advise you to get your own from the PDA the day you qualify.

We are all human but in this crazy profession we are not allowed to make human errors!

[johnep]

Absolutely, The PDA is a very good aid to sleeping at night.
johnep

[Zoggite]

If you are only a Pharmacy student and you are working as a Dispenser, then the Buck stops with the Registered Pharmacist who should have made the final check before handing the meds out to the patient; A non-pharmacist cannot be held liable above a pharmacist. That is why Phcists get paid so much more than Dispensers: because the final legal responsibility rests with them!(even when the prescriber has made a mistake, as in the recent Lloyds dexamethasone case...)

[paco]

The key thing that most pharmacists don't understand is that to have a compensation case you have to have suffered a 'loss'. This means a siginificant discomfort e.g. death or a bad reaction. If someone somes back with the wrong tablets, which they haven't taken where's the loss? Nobody can 'sue' for the cost of having to return to the pharmacy. The majority of people, in my experience are ok if you apologise profusely.
However you can always rely on the Pharm Soc to persue you. I know of one case where someone was done because they didn't put a PIL in the packaging.
Death to the Pharm Soc

[Jeff]

If you are only a Pharmacy student and you are working as a Dispenser, then the Buck stops with the Registered Pharmacist who should have made the final check before handing the meds out to the patient; A non-pharmacist cannot be held liable above a pharmacist. That is why Phcists get paid so much more than Dispensers: because the final legal responsibility rests with them!(even when the prescriber has made a mistake, as in the recent Lloyds dexamethasone case...)

Fines in Boots peppermint water baby death case

In your dreams.

Jeff

[DavidS]

There is a welsh solicitor who advertises on net for people who have had a dispensing error. Sorry forgotten link but google will find.
One reason Lloyds have such powerful glue on their labels to stop pts transposing them and claiming an error.
johnep

What I do when signing off scripts is to initial partly on the label and partly on the box: this means I can easily tell if the labels been moved.
Also, if its off an owing I put "owing" after my initials, if its phones, etc etc.