It's not as rare as one might think.
Pharmacy mistakes are not as rare as you might think. Common errors: 1) the wrong dosage 2) the wrong instructions (For example: Take 4 times per day instead of 4 times per week.) 3) giving the wrong medication or substituting another brand that causes side effects.
It's recommended that everyone get a photocopy of their prescription. You can ask for a copy at your doctor's office. So when you pick up your prescription at the pharmacy, you can immediately check to see if the label on the pill container has everything exactly as was written on the prescription.
Almost 100,000 people die each year from prescription mixups. And the Institute of Medicine says that almost 200,000 die each year from medical mistakes in hospitals.
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