When a trusted medical provider makes a mistake with your medication, the consequences can be life-altering or fatal. Prescription errors, incorrect dosages, and dangerous drug combinations can cause serious harm that no patient should ever have to face — these are medical failures with real, devastating consequences, and victims have the right to pursue justice.

If you or someone you love was harmed because of a medication mistake, our medical malpractice attorneys at Wagner Reese are here to help. We have been standing up for injured Hoosiers and their families since 1997, and we understand the physical, emotional, and financial toll that a medication error can take. Our team brings more than 150 years of combined legal experience to every case we handle.

How Medication Errors Happen

Medication errors can occur at virtually any point in the care process, from the moment a prescription is written to the moment a patient takes a pill. A doctor may prescribe the wrong medication entirely, recommend a dosage that exceeds safe limits, or order a combination of drugs that interact dangerously. When providers fail to review a patient’s full pharmaceutical history or communicate with other prescribing physicians, the risk of a harmful oversight increases significantly.

Sadly, these mistakes are more common than most people realize. According to the CDC, adverse drug events account for nearly 1.5 million emergency department visits and 500,000 hospitalizations in the United States each year. Medication errors remain one of the most frequent and preventable sources of patient harm, and a significant contributor to injury and death in healthcare settings nationwide.

Prescription Errors and Negligence

Not all prescription mistakes are accidents. There have been documented cases in which physicians have written improper prescriptions for financial gain, which is just as dangerous as any unintentional error. Patients who follow their doctor’s instructions in good faith may suffer severe harm or even death, and whether the error resulted from carelessness or deliberate misconduct, injured patients deserve accountability. Reading about warning signs that medication could be putting your life at risk can help you identify whether something went wrong and what records to preserve.

Compensation for Victims of Medication Mistakes

When a person is prescribed the wrong medication, given the wrong dose, or provided with a dangerous combination of pharmaceutical drugs, the consequences can be severe and life-threatening. Victims may suffer injuries or illnesses that require further medical treatment or even hospitalization, and depending on the nature and extent of their injuries, a victim may be unable to return to work temporarily or permanently. Understanding the full range of recoverable damages is an important step in evaluating your case.

If you are the victim of a medication mistake, you may be able to recover compensation for the following damages:

  • Medical expenses: Costs from additional required treatment and hospitalization
  • Prescription costs: The cost of additional medication required to treat new injuries or illnesses
  • Emergency services: Emergency room and ambulance expenses related to the error
  • Lost income: Both past and future lost wages resulting from your injuries
  • Earning capacity: Reduced or permanently lost ability to work and earn
  • Pain and suffering: Physical pain, emotional distress, and diminished quality of life

These damages reflect the full scope of what a medication error can cost a victim and their family, and you should not have to bear those costs when a medical provider’s negligence is responsible.

When a Medication Error Causes Wrongful Death

In the most tragic cases, medication mistakes lead to the death of a patient. When that happens, surviving family members may be entitled to pursue a wrongful death claim on behalf of their loved one. Compensation in these cases can include medical costs incurred prior to death, funeral and burial expenses, loss of companionship, and loss of expected income or inheritance.

Many of these cases also overlap with other forms of malpractice, such as failure to diagnose, where a provider’s failure to properly assess a patient leads to dangerous or incorrect treatment. Our attorneys are experienced in handling the full spectrum of these complex, interrelated claims.

What to Do After a Medication Error in Indiana

After a medication error, gathering the right documentation as quickly as possible is critical. You should collect your prescription records, pharmacy receipts, medical bills, and any communications with your healthcare provider. Indiana has specific time limits for filing medical malpractice claims, so acting promptly is essential to preserving your rights. Learning about how to review medical prescriptions for errors can also help you identify whether something went wrong and which records to save.

Many victims are uncertain whether what happened to them rises to the level of legal negligence. It is important that doctors and medical personnel give the best possible care to their patients, and this involves asking about all other medications and thoroughly researching drug mixtures, side effects, and potential interactions. If your provider failed to meet that basic standard of care, you may have a valid claim.

Contact Wagner Reese LLP for a Free Consultation

Our firm has dedicated itself to representing injured individuals and their families in Indianapolis and across Indiana for nearly three decades. We have earned a reputation among peers and in the legal community for our commitment to complex, high-stakes cases and our focus on delivering real results for real people. 

We offer contingent fee representation, meaning you pay nothing unless we win your case. Medication mistakes should never occur, and when they do, the victims deserve a legal team that will fight tirelessly on their behalf. Contact Wagner Reese today for a free, confidential case evaluation.