Pharmacy Negligence is a fast growing body of law as pharmacies take on greater responsibility and a broader role in the delivery of healthcare services. In recent years, the courts have been in tune with this progression and in 2015 the Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal in Oleckna v. Daytona Discount Pharmacy, 162 So.3d 178 (Fla. 5th DCA 2015) first pronounced a pharmacist’s common law duty to their patients to exercise reasonable care, good faith and prudence in filling medicinal drug prescriptions.
Suspect a pharmacy error? Let Cranshaw Brown investigate what’s really in your prescriptions.
The court stated that the duty extended beyond simply following the prescribing physician’s directions. The court refused to interpret a pharmacist’s duty in filling prescriptions as acting in “robotic compliance” with the instructions of the prescribing physician. Gone are the days that a pharmacist can turn a blind eye and say that he or she filled a valid and lawful prescription when that prescription is threatening to the patient’s health, safety and welfare.
In filling prescribed medicinal drugs, the pharmacist must exercise his or her independent judgment to determine whether it is necessary to collaborate and consult with the prescribing physician. Hence, the pharmacist’s duty is two-fold:
Below is an example of some of the medication error cases Cranshaw Brown has handled over the years:
