Medication safety
A patient came to pick up her medications after a virtual consultation with her physician earlier that day. She expected an antibiotic eye ointment for an eye infection and an inhaler for her throat symptoms. When I checked her profile, I found only the inhaler had been prescribed. The patient insisted she was supposed to receive the eye ointment as well.
I remembered seeing a prescription for an antibiotic eye ointment earlier for a different patient which was sent along with their regular medications. The timing suggested a possible mix-up. It occured to me that the eye ointment intended for the first patient might have been mistakenly assigned to the second patient.
I contacted the second patient, who said they had not discussed any eye treatment with their physician. I then called the prescriber, who confirmed there had been an error. The doctor appreciated the call and promptly gave a new prescription for the correct eye ointment for the first patient.
This intervention ensured that the first patient received the right treatment promptly, while avoiding the risk of the second patient getting an unnecessary medication.
Because of a pharmacist, something important happened.
