A recent wrongful death lawsuit was filed by a personal injury attorney in Chicago by the family of a woman who died in a local nursing home. The lawsuit alleges that the nursing home erred in overmedicating her. Two doctors prescribed different medications for her and she was given both medications at the same time.

According to the allegations of the lawsuit, the combination of drugs given in and each given in an incorrect dose caused her death. The nursing home is being sued on the grounds that it was negligent by administering the medications. In addition, it is also alleged that the nursing home failed to monitor the woman’s condition after the medication error. This resulted in a failure to report her condition to medical personnel who may have been able to save her life. The lawsuit filed by the personal injury attorney Chicago is seeking more than $200,000 in damages.

Unfortunately, medication errors in nursing homes are common. Nursing homes are notoriously understaffed. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, more than 50 percent of all nursing homes do not have sufficient number of staff members on any shift to provide adequate care. Although the law requires medications to only be administered by licensed nurses, when the facility is understaffed, this requirement is often overlooked. The resulting error can be devastating, as alleged in the recent wrongful death litigation filed by a personal injury attorney Chicago.

Other medication errors occur when the nursing home fails to even administer the required medication. If diabetic patients do not receive their insulin or other medications, the failure may lead to death. Other medical conditions can result in death if the required medications are not properly administered.

If you suspect your loved one has suffered or died due to a medication error, a personal injury attorney Chicago might investigate the following.

• Who administers the medication and verify that person is properly licensed?
• What method of identification does the facility use to be certain the right person is receiving the correct medication and correct dosage? Are nurses required to check ID bracelets? Do they have a photograph of the resident of each bed near the medication tray?

Nurses administering medications to residents cannot become complacent about these vital safeguards. Nursing home residents are often there for long periods of time and may be prescribed routine medications. Nurses cannot view it as routine and must continue to check every single time they administer a medication that is the right medication, the right dosage and the right patient.

• How are records kept to document which medications have been administered and what date and time they were given?
• There must be a procedure to check medication interactions every time a doctor prescribes a medication to identify any potential adverse interactions between new medications and medications the resident is already taking.
• There must be a monthly review by a pharmacist of all medications prescribed for each patient by each doctor in order to determine if the medications have any potential for harm.

If someone you love has been harmed by a medication error, contact a Personal Injury Attorney Chicago to evaluate your case.