Preventing Medication Errors

You as a patient can play an active role in decreasing medication errors and ensuring your safety.

I believe the best way to prevent medication errors is to use a double check system. Here are some simple tips when picking up your medications at the pharmacy.

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1. In general, when picking up your prescriptions make sure you’re not in a hurry. I often see patients try to rush in and out of the pharmacy without checking their prescription bottles or waiting for the pharmacist consultation
2. Don’t automatically assume you are given the correct prescription
3. Always check the bottle or bottles for the correct patient name, medication, and strength, and
4. If you are picking up a refill, open the bottle and visually check for the correct color and shape of the tablet. Each bottle should also contain an auxiliary label with a description of the tablet or capsule.

For new prescriptions, I encourage you to stay for the pharmacist consultation. The California State Board of Pharmacy mandates that all new prescriptions require a pharmacist provides a medication consultation.

When reviewing your new prescription, inform the pharmacist about the purpose for which the doctor gave you the prescription and the directions to take it. This helps the pharmacist double check that the prescription is appropriate. Also inform the pharmacist of your known drug allergies to ensure they check for cross sensitivity. Make sure your pharmacist is aware of any over-the-counter medications or herbal supplements that you are taking to ensure they check for potential drug interactions. Lastly, fill all your prescriptions within the same pharmacy chain so that your medication profile is accurate and up-to-date. Otherwise, you run the risk of potential drug-drug interactions missed through the computer database.

Remembering the above tips and system allows you to decrease the chance of medication errors when taking your prescriptions. • About Dr. Sih

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