Medication Errors in Children Medical Malpractice in Chicago

When a child receives the wrong medication, the wrong dose, or a drug that should never have been prescribed at all, the consequences can be severe, lasting, and sometimes irreversible. Medication errors are among the most common types of preventable harm in pediatric care, and families in Chicago who are dealing with this situation deserve clear answers about their legal rights. At Briskman Briskman & Greenberg, a Chicago abogado de lesiones personales from our team is ready to listen and help you understand your options.

Table of Contents

• Why Children Face a Higher Risk of Medication Errors Than Adults
• Common Types of Medication Errors That Harm Children in Chicago
• How Illinois Law Defines a Medication Error Malpractice Claim
• Filing Deadlines for Pediatric Medication Error Claims in Illinois
• What Damages Can Families Recover in a Pediatric Medication Error Case
• The Role of Expert Witnesses in Pediatric Medication Error Cases
• How Briskman Briskman & Greenberg Can Help Your Family
• FAQs About Medication Errors in Children Medical Malpractice in Chicago

Why Children Face a Higher Risk of Medication Errors Than Adults

Children are not simply small adults when it comes to medication. Their bodies process drugs differently, and dosing must be calculated based on body weight, age, kidney function, and liver development. That added complexity creates more opportunities for error at every step of the prescribing and dispensing process.

The US Pharmacopeia Medication Errors Reporting Program found higher rates of medication errors in pediatric patients (31%) than in adults (13%). That gap is not a coincidence. In children, most drugs are prescribed based on body weight, which means a provider who records the wrong weight or miscalculates a dose can expose a child to a dangerous amount of medication before anyone realizes a mistake was made.

It has been estimated that 7.5 million preventable medication errors could occur with pediatric patients in the United States each year. Other studies estimated that 14 to 31% of pediatric medication errors could result in harm or death. Those numbers represent real children, real families, and real suffering that should never have happened.

Medication errors occur more frequently in areas of the hospital where pediatric patient care is most complicated and the patients most vulnerable, including the NICU and the PICU, with an average error rate of 1 error for every 6.8 admissions. The emergency department, where up to 25% of the pediatric patient population receives care each year, is another area where pediatric dosing errors are commonplace. Chicago families who visit hospitals like Lurie Children’s Hospital or Comer Children’s Hospital at the University of Chicago trust that their child will receive safe, accurate care. When that trust is broken by a preventable medication error, the consequences can follow a child for years.

Children, in comparison to adults, are often unable to adequately communicate when they are experiencing an adverse effect and have a limited internal physiological capacity to buffer medication errors. That inability to speak up makes early detection harder, and it makes the responsibility of care providers even greater.

Common Types of Medication Errors That Harm Children in Chicago

Medication errors in pediatric care take many forms. Understanding what went wrong is the first step toward building a legal claim.

Dosing errors are the most frequent problem. The most common types of harmful pediatric medication errors include improper dose or quantity (37.5%), omission error (19.9%), unauthorized or wrong drug (13.7%), and prescribing error (9.4%), along with wrong administration technique, wrong time, drug prepared incorrectly, wrong dosage form, and wrong route.

One out-of-hospital medication error occurs every 8 minutes among children under 6 years of age. Medication errors are particularly common in infants and young children, likely due to the near universal use of liquid medications in this population. Oral liquid medications present unique challenges such as varying concentrations, dose measurement, and the frequent use of non-standardized dosing instruments, and they account for the majority of pediatric dosing errors.

Medication errors involving pediatric patients are most often caused by performance deficit (43%), knowledge deficit (29.9%), procedure not followed (20.7%), miscommunication (16.8%), and calculation error, computer entry error, inadequate or lack of monitoring, improper use of pumps, and documentation errors.

In a hospital setting, these errors can involve a nurse administering a medication through the wrong route, a pharmacist dispensing a drug at the wrong concentration, or a physician ordering a medication that is contraindicated for a child’s age or weight. Each of these scenarios can form the basis of a medical malpractice claim when the error departs from the accepted standard of care. Just as pediatric emergency room negligence and neonatal negligence claims hold providers accountable for failures in clinical judgment, medication error claims rest on the same foundational principle: a trained professional failed to do what a reasonably competent provider would have done.

How Illinois Law Defines a Medication Error Malpractice Claim

A medication error does not automatically become a malpractice case. Illinois law requires proof of four specific elements: duty, breach, causation, and damages. Each one must be established before a claim can succeed.

Duty means the provider owed your child a professional obligation to follow the accepted standard of care. Breach means the provider failed to meet that standard, whether by prescribing the wrong drug, calculating the wrong dose, or failing to check for dangerous drug interactions. Causation means that breach directly caused your child’s injury. Damages means your child suffered actual harm as a result.

Illinois medical malpractice claims are also subject to a procedural requirement under 735 ILCS 5/2-622, which requires that a qualified health professional review the case and certify in an affidavit that there is reasonable and meritorious cause to file suit. That reviewer must have practiced or taught in the relevant medical field within the last six years. This requirement exists to filter out claims that lack medical support, but it also means you need an experienced team behind you from the very beginning.

En 735 ILCS 5/2-1117, when multiple parties share fault, joint and several liability rules apply. Any defendant whose fault is determined to be 25% or greater of the total fault is jointly and severally liable for all damages. This matters in pediatric medication cases because liability can extend to the prescribing physician, the hospital, the pharmacy, and the nursing staff, all at once.

A abogado de negligencias médicas can help families identify every party whose negligence contributed to the harm their child suffered, which is critical when multiple providers were involved in a child’s care.

Filing Deadlines for Pediatric Medication Error Claims in Illinois

Illinois law gives families more time to file a medical malpractice claim on behalf of a child, but that extra time is not unlimited. Understanding the deadlines under 735 ILCS 5/13-212 is essential before assuming you have years to act.

For adult patients, the general rule under 735 ILCS 5/13-212(a) is that a claim must be filed within two years of when the patient knew or reasonably should have known about the injury and its connection to medical negligence. An absolute four-year statute of repose applies regardless of when the injury was discovered.

Children receive different treatment under the law. Illinois provides extended deadlines for claims involving children. Under 735 ILCS 5/13-212(b), when the person entitled to bring the action was under 18 at the time the cause of action accrued, the statute of repose extends to eight years from the act or omission, but no later than the person’s 22nd birthday, whichever occurs first.

Illinois law recognizes that children cannot reasonably be expected to recognize or act on medical malpractice on their own. As a result, the statute of limitations is extended when the victim is under 18 years old at the time of the malpractice. This special rule gives children additional time to discover and respond to injuries that might not be immediately obvious during early development.

If a child dies as a result of a medication error, a separate claim may arise under the Illinois Wrongful Death Act, 740 ILCS 180, which allows surviving family members to pursue damages. That claim generally must be filed within two years of the date of death.

Waiting is a risk even when the law allows more time. Medical records, pharmacy logs, and witness accounts are easier to obtain and preserve early. A abogado de negligencia médica can begin gathering that evidence right away, before key documentation disappears.

What Damages Can Families Recover in a Pediatric Medication Error Case

When a medication error injures a child, the financial and emotional toll on a family can be staggering. Illinois law allows families to pursue compensation for both economic and non-economic losses.

Economic damages cover the concrete, measurable costs of the injury. These include past and future medical expenses, costs of rehabilitation and therapy, adaptive equipment, long-term care needs, and, in cases involving permanent injury, the loss of the child’s future earning capacity. A child who suffers brain damage or organ damage from a medication overdose may require care and support for the rest of their life. Those projected costs must be calculated carefully and supported by expert testimony.

Non-economic damages cover the human side of the harm: pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of a normal childhood, and the disruption to family life. Parents may also have claims for the loss of their child’s companionship and society. These damages are real and recognized under Illinois law, even though they cannot be reduced to a single invoice.

Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1117, all defendants found liable are jointly and severally liable for past and future medical and medically related expenses. This means that even if one defendant has limited resources, another with greater fault may be responsible for covering the full scope of medical costs.

Attorney fees in Illinois medical malpractice cases are governed by 735 ILCS 5/2-1114, which caps contingency fees at 33 1/3% of all sums recovered. At Briskman Briskman & Greenberg, we handle these cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you. You may still be responsible for certain case costs and expenses, and we will explain all of that clearly before you make any decisions.

A abogado de negligencias médicas can work with medical and financial experts to build a complete picture of your child’s losses, both now and in the future.

The Role of Expert Witnesses in Pediatric Medication Error Cases

Expert testimony is not optional in a pediatric medication error case. It is required. Illinois courts will not allow a medical malpractice claim to proceed without qualified expert witnesses who can explain what the standard of care required and how the provider failed to meet it.

In federal courts, the admissibility of expert scientific testimony is governed by the standard established in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993), which requires courts to act as gatekeepers and evaluate whether expert testimony rests on a reliable scientific foundation. Illinois state courts apply their own standards, but the principle is the same: expert opinions must be grounded in accepted medical science, not speculation.

In a pediatric medication error case, your legal team will typically need a pediatric pharmacist or clinical pharmacologist to testify about proper dosing standards, a physician in the relevant specialty to address the standard of care, and a life care planner or economist to project future damages. Each expert must have recent, relevant experience in the specific area at issue.

The defense will bring their own experts. That is why the quality of expert selection matters enormously. A well-prepared expert who can explain, clearly and credibly, how a hospital or physician deviated from accepted pediatric medication protocols is often the difference between a successful claim and one that fails.

Families across Chicagoland, from Lincoln Park to Hyde Park to the neighborhoods surrounding Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Rush University Medical Center, have had to navigate this process after a child was harmed. Having a abogado de negligencia médica who understands how to build and present expert testimony is critical to the outcome of your case.

How Briskman Briskman & Greenberg Can Help Your Family

Your child deserved safe, competent medical care. When a provider failed to deliver that, your family has the right to seek accountability. The team at Briskman Briskman & Greenberg takes pediatric medication error cases seriously because we understand what is at stake for your child’s future.

We review medical records, consult with qualified medical experts, identify every party whose negligence contributed to your child’s harm, and build a case designed to recover the full compensation your family needs. We handle all of this on a contingency fee basis, so you do not need to worry about upfront costs while your child is recovering.

Our office is located at 205 W Randolph St., Suite 925, Chicago, IL 60606, right in the heart of the city, close to the Daley Center and the Richard J. Daley Center courthouse where many Cook County civil cases are filed. We serve families throughout Chicago and the surrounding communities. A abogado de negligencias médicas from our team can meet with you, review the facts of your situation, and give you an honest assessment of your options.

Call Briskman Briskman & Greenberg today at (312) 222-0010 to schedule a free consultation. There is no obligation, and speaking with us does not create an attorney-client relationship. We are here to answer your questions and help you understand what your family’s rights may be under Illinois law.

FAQs About Medication Errors in Children Medical Malpractice in Chicago

What counts as a medication error in a pediatric malpractice case?

A medication error in a pediatric malpractice case is any mistake in the prescribing, dispensing, or administration of a drug that departs from the accepted standard of care and causes harm to a child. This includes giving the wrong drug, the wrong dose, the wrong route of administration, or failing to check for dangerous interactions with other medications the child is taking. Not every error rises to the level of malpractice. The key question is whether a reasonably competent provider in the same situation would have made the same mistake. If the answer is no, and the error caused your child’s injury, you may have a valid claim under Illinois law.

Can I file a claim if my child was harmed by a medication error at a hospital emergency room?

Yes. Emergency rooms are actually one of the highest-risk settings for pediatric medication errors, and hospitals can be held liable for the negligence of their staff. If a nurse, physician, or pharmacist working in a Chicago hospital emergency department made a dosing error that harmed your child, that hospital may bear responsibility. Liability can extend to multiple parties, including the prescribing doctor, the dispensing pharmacist, and the hospital itself. Illinois law allows claims against all responsible parties, and the joint liability rules under 735 ILCS 5/2-1117 may require defendants with significant fault to cover the full scope of your child’s medical costs.

How long does my family have to file a pediatric medication error lawsuit in Illinois?

Under 735 ILCS 5/13-212(b), a medical malpractice claim on behalf of a child must generally be filed within eight years of the date the error occurred, and in no event after the child’s 22nd birthday. While this is more time than the standard two-year limit that applies to adult claims, it is not unlimited. Evidence becomes harder to gather as time passes. Medical records may be purged, witnesses’ memories fade, and pharmacy logs may no longer be available. Contacting an attorney as soon as you suspect a medication error is always the right move, regardless of how much time the law technically allows.

What if the medication error happened at a pharmacy, not a hospital?

Pharmacies and pharmacists have an independent duty to dispense medications accurately and to catch dosing errors before they reach a patient. If a Chicago pharmacy filled a prescription with the wrong drug, the wrong concentration, or the wrong instructions, and your child was harmed as a result, the pharmacy and the pharmacist may be liable. This type of claim can stand alongside or separately from a claim against the prescribing physician. Illinois law does not limit your family to one defendant, and a thorough investigation will identify every party whose negligence played a role in your child’s injury.

What if my child’s injury from a medication error was not discovered right away?

Illinois law accounts for this situation through what is known as the discovery rule. Under 735 ILCS 5/13-212(a), the two-year limitations period begins when you knew or reasonably should have known that your child was injured and that the injury may have been caused by medical negligence. For children, the extended deadlines under 735 ILCS 5/13-212(b) provide additional protection. However, delayed discovery does not mean unlimited time. If you later learn that a medication error during your child’s treatment caused a developmental delay, organ damage, or another serious condition, contact a abogado de negligencia médica right away to protect your family’s right to file a claim.

More Resources About Pediatric Medical Malpractice in Chicago

• Pediatric Medical Malpractice in Chicago
• Failure to Diagnose Pediatric Illnesses Medical Malpractice in Chicago
• Pediatric Emergency Room Negligence Medical Malpractice in Chicago
• Delayed Diagnosis of Pediatric Sepsis Medical Malpractice in Chicago
• Neonatal Negligence Medical Malpractice in Chicago
• Failure to Recognize Child Abuse Medical Malpractice in Chicago