| From Classbrain.com News A report by the Institute of Medicine in 1999, found that as many as 4% of adults that were hospitalized in the US were harmed during their stay in the hospital in some way. This report spurred a research project on kids that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The report found that approximately 6% of children in the study area, Boston, were given faulty prescriptions, and this didn't even count the near misses! How can you protect yourself and your children? Here are a few simple rules to follow to make sure that your prescriptions are accurate. 1. Make sure that the doctor has written a legible prescription. If you can't read it, the person filling your presccription may not be able to read it either. 2. Read back the prescription to the doctor. Sometimes hearing a prescription read will let the doctor catch a mistake in dosage or drug name. 3. Request that the doctor give written instructions to the person calling in the prescription. Oral instructions increase the chance of error. 4. Double-check the drug when you pick it up at the pharmacist. Make sure that it's the correct drug, and not one that has a similar name. Other questions that you may want to ask at the doctor's office about any prescriptions he may order: Is this a brand name drug or a generic? Does the generic have the same effect? Is there any danger of a reaction with any other medicine that you're taking? What do you do if you miss a dose? Are there any restrictions related to this drug: foods, drinks, or sunlight? It's important to be diligent about medications. It's always better to be safe than sorry. © Copyright 2003 by ClassBrain.com |