For example, a pharmacists may sometimes grab the drug on the shelf next over from the one they intended to take. Pharmacists often feel the pressure to work at a fast pace. Many are also required to work long hours. Working in a stressful environment can give rise to reckless conduct and medication errors that put the safety of patients at risk.
In addition, several drugs have complicated, similar-sounding names or medical abbreviations. For example, the medications Zantac and Zyrtec sound similar but treat different illnesses. Pharmacists may also have difficulty deciphering handwritten prescriptions from doctors. According to the FDA, the most common errors happen when a pharmacist or other medical professional incorrectly reads a prescription written by a doctor.
Wrong selections by the health care provider when using electronic medical records to dispense medications can result in errors as well. A person could also make mistakes when entering information into a computer. Pharmacists are obligated to verify each individual’s name, birth date, address and phone number in order to avoid patient misidentification.