Land O’Lakes Personal Injury Lawyer

How to Prove a Pharmacy Negligence Claim?

With most of the country in the midst of an opiate addiction crisis, the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries have come under fire in recent years. And with pain management clinics on every other block, Florida has been a hotbed for the opiate crisis for many years now – from doctors over-prescribing, pharmacists and their unlawful dispensing, to the sale of opiate medication illegally on every street corner. And with such issues, the problems in Florida’s pharmaceutical industry has been put under a microscope, opening the eyes of the people to negligence on the part of pharmacies around the state. Negligence is defined as the failure of someone to exercise the normal degree of care expected from any individual in those same circumstances – for a pharmacist, simply put, it means they have been careless at performing the duties of their job. According to Land O’Lakes personal injury lawyer, Anissa K. Morris, Esq. one of the major distinctions that must be made in a personal injury claim involving a negligent party, is that pharmacy negligence does not apply to cases of intentional harm or damage. Therefore, during a pharmacy negligence claim, a pharmacist is said to have made mistakes or omissions of care, due to careless operations or procedures while performing the duties of their job. Land O’Lakes personal injury lawyer, Anissa Morris will help us to illustrate just how these cases are proven and won for the injured or damaged party.

In any personal injury claim of negligence, proof is required in a number of different areas, including – duty, breach of that duty, and how it caused injury and/or damages. While in years past it may have been difficult to assign negligence to a pharmacist dispending drugs, due to the changes in the healthcare landscape and the microscope being put on pharmaceutical industry, the law is beginning to hold these individuals more and more accountable. However, despite this, in any pharmacy negligence claim, as long as a pharmacist takes the reasonable steps to prevent any foreseeable harm they cannot be held accountable – only when they do not take precautions are they then held liable. Here is what each step in the process means.

· Duty

The duty refers to the requirement that a medical professional act in a accordance with what is to be expected of their job and for the benefit of another. Pharmacists are expected to not only fill prescriptions correctly and accurately but to perform other essential duties such as proper, accurate patient counseling and drug regimen reviews.

· Breach of Duty

According to Land O’Lakes personal injury lawyer, Anissa K. Morris, breach of duty occurs in two different ways. The first is known as nonfeasance, or when the expected duties of the job are not performed, and the second is known as malfeasance, or when the duties of the job are not completed entirely or are completely inaccurately. For instance, if a prescription is filled incorrectly, there is a clear breach of duty, however, for other activities such as counseling or advisory, it may take more evidence to prove malfeasance.

· Causation

The main thing for an attorney like Land O’Lakes personal injury lawyer, Anissa Morris, to prove during a personal injury claim involving pharmacy negligence, is that the pharmacist’s negligence is the actual cause of the harm, injury, or damages in question. In addition, the defendant must have been able to reasonably foresee that such negligent actions would, in fact, cause injury or damages to occur.

· Damages

Damages are the main point of any personal injury claim, and during a pharmacy negligence claim, once all information and evidence is collected and assessed, the courts will make a determination of the damages the plaintiff is due. The courts will have to determine that because of the negligent actions of the pharmacists in performing his or her duties, they, and not the physician who prescribed, or anyone else and their actions are the cause of the damages.

Once you have understood these aspects of a pharmacy negligence claim, with the help of an attorney experienced in personal injury law like Land O’Lakes personal injury lawyer, Anissa Morris, you are on your way to the justice as well as the monetary compensation you deserve. For more information or to schedule a personal injury consultation with Ms. Morris, contact Spinner Law Firm today.

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