Just 1 of the over 240,000 people who die each year IN THE USA alone from big pharma drugs, malpractice, surgery and drugs taken they way they should.

This is the biggest scam on the American people in human history.

As for her, I pray her baby is born normal without problems.

Oh my goodness - she's going to be absolutely petrified throughout her entire pregnancy... and probably months or even years afterwards just thinking about what that pill could have possibly done. I, too, wish her and that child safety throughout pregnancy and the rest of that baby's life.

That being said, this is a lesson well learned in reading the bottles before ingesting anything. What an awful way to learn it, though. My prayers are with her and that precious little baby she's carrying.

There are times when the appearance of a pill or capsule changes. If the happens I always call to make sure I have the right med.

The goes for veterinary meds, too.

jkatze, agreed. I go online to see what the pill is supposed to look like and the numbers it is supposed to have on it (if it's big enough to have them). If it doesn't look like what I see online? I call the pharmacy and ask them what it is supposed to look like.

It isn't relevant that shenever checked the name on the Rx. It isn't relevant that the pharmacist told the young woman that the medication was not appropriate for a pregnant woman to take and she took it anyway! I am sure they will sue and they will win. I believe in personal responsibility. If my pharmacist said that to me, I would have called the Dr's. office before taking it. I fear for that unborn child because his/her mother is (in my opinion) an idiot and will probably do similar things to the kid!

I always read the medication inserts. I have such severe allergies to many drugs and simply for that reason I do not want to take something that has an additive in it that may cause me harm. The pharmacy should not have made the mistake, but she also should have read the inserts.

Now had the inserts said it was the correct medication and it was not then I feel she should be able to file a law suit. But if the insert was the same as the wrong medication pick up and taken, and she did not read all the information then I don't think she should sue at all.

As for the pharmacist he should be reprimanded for making a mistake like that.

blondeness, I didn't see anywhere in the article where it said the pharmacist told her that it shouldn't be used by pregnant women. It seems that no information was given. Don't be so judgmental.

If you are pregnant you must be much more vigilant than when you are not. Don't trust anyone. Anything artificial that you put in your body can have a catastrophic effect if you are not careful and it can be through no fault of your own. This case is just the tip of the iceberg. The comment about how many people are killed by mistakes is probably a conservative estimate. Never assume that just because someone is a pharmacist or doctor, that they know everything. Double check and check it again. Ultimately, you are responsible for your child's well being.

Yeah.... Something to remember about this is that pharmacist are humans that make mistakes so you ALWAYS read the bottle and Google the medication. Secondly, you also Google any interactions that can result from the medication and anything you might be taking including over the counter medications and alternative medicines.

modact07 - assume (although could be wrong) that blondeness032 meant that at most major or Grocery store pharmacies you have to sign your name (next to every prescription you picked up) and check whether you do or do not want to speak to the pharmacist. In addition, all pharmacies staple a pamphlet about the medicine (with any pregnancy warnings) to the prescription - if I were pregnant, I would at least read the pamphlet to know that the drug was safe for the pregnancy. I wish this woman the best but being pregnant does mean being cautious about you put in your body.

Even tho the article said that a pharmacist that gave it to her, In most places it is a pharmacist asst. that hands the meds to the client,just a small note. This in it self does not free anyone from some level of reponibility.

But yes the pharmacy was wrong, but we have stopped holding ourselves responsible for our actions also. I get meds every month, and before I sign for any I look at the bottles, check my name, the meds name and look to see if the med looks like the ones I have been taking, because sometimes they change companies and the meds look different. I am just as responsible ( not more responsible, just as ) the pharmacy and pharmacist to insure that I get what I am suppose to. I feel for this lady and her condition. But sometimes we just find it too easy to place ALL the blame on someone else and forget that we have a responsibility unto ourselves. Mistakes can be made. Bad mistakes are made when more then one person partakes in the same assuming that the 1 st person is inflatable at what they do.

To Sue is the main stream solution to all our problems.[not]

The pamphlet is not mandated at every pharmacy, nor in every state. A signature is not always needed either. And, the article never states that the pharmacist stated not to take it if she were pregnant, you misread.

OMG, I saw this on the news yesterday as soon as I walked in from work. I feel terrible for this young lady. She looks absolutely horrified and rightly so. I think no amount of money in a law suit could make the situation any better if she loses the baby or it is born with birth defects. The pharmacy is at fault but as a poster above said, I always read the leaflets enclosed with my prescriptions especially with a new one. I feel awful for her and her family.

The pamphlet is not mandated at every pharmacy, nor in every state. A signature is not always needed either.

There is always an insert w/ any medication, even something as simple as a laxative. If she knew she was pregnant the 1st words out of her mouth at that pharmacy should've been an anxious I just found out I was pregnant so is this OK for me to take? And if she didn't have the brains to say that, then she should've at least read the insert prior to ingesting a pill. Or, jeez, I don't know, when she checked the bottle for the dosage, didn't she see it wasn't her name on the label? Her education system has clearly failed her.

Who blindly trusts like that in this day & age? If one of my regular meds changes its size, shape, or color (& I always check them b4 I move away from the counter to make sure they're what I'm supposed to get b/c mistakes have happened), I ask about it. Take personal responsibility, jeez, don't just put stuff in your mouth & cry about it later! Esp if you're pregnant.

If she signed for that medication & ticked off the "refused counseling" box, she's lucky the pharmacy has offered to pay any medical expenses she may incur as a result of the error. While someone did hand her the wrong bottle of pills, she's the one who didn't want to speak to a pharmacist. That's going to count against her in any lawsuit.

Methotrexate is not an "abortion drug" as per MSNBCs misleading & inflammatory headline, either. It's commonly used to treat rheumatoid arthritis as well as used for treating cancer. It simply falls into the category of meds whose side effects dictate that it should not be taken by pregnant women b/c it could cause a miscarriage or birth defects. It is not prescribed to induce a miscarriage AKA spontaneous abortion.

I agree 110%...Its time people take responsiblity for their actions.

I got to thinking about how she stated she only took one pill & it made her so sick within, what, 20 min or so (I wish there was a link to the article; this is a dumb comment set-up, MSNBC!), so I looked up the side effects of methotrexate @ drugs.com:

Methotrexate Tablets

All medicines may cause side effects, but many people have no, or minor, side effects. Check with your doctor if any of these most COMMON side effects persist or become bothersome when using Methotrexate Tablets:

Dizziness; headache; loss of appetite; mild hair loss; nausea; stomach pain or upset; tiredness; vomiting.

Seek medical attention right away if any of these SEVERE side effects occur when using Methotrexate Tablets:

Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); black, tarry stools; blood in the urine; calf or leg pain or swelling; change in the amount of urine; chest pain; coma; confusion; coughing up blood; dark urine; diarrhea; difficult or painful urination; dry cough; fever, chills, or sore throat; menstrual changes; mental or mood changes; mouth sores; one-sided weakness; red, swollen, peeling, or blistered skin; seizures; severe or persistent nausea or vomiting; shortness of breath; speech changes; unusual bleeding or bruising; unusual pain and discoloration of the skin; unusual tiredness or weakness; vision changes or vision loss; yellowing of skin or eyes.

Now my cynical side has reared its ugly head & is wondering if she took a pill at all, or just flushed one & made a stink hoping for a nice lawsuit.

Now my cynical side has reared its ugly head & is wondering if she took a pill at all, or just flushed one & made a stink hoping for a nice lawsuit.

Haha. Damn you for putting that thought into my head. Although nowadays I would not put that past some people. I wonder if it stays in the system long enough to run a quick test.

Like I said on another forum about this story, ALWAYS CHECK YOUR MEDICATIONS, PEOPLE! I'm somewhat amazed in that, given the numerous prescriptions I take every month, I've only had one screw-up, but that screw-up could have cost me my life had I not taken my usual precautions. I was given tramadol (which gives me seizures) instead of trazodone. The pills look almost identical, and the dosage was the same, too.

Before you leave your doctor, confirm what medication you're taking (brand name and generic). Make sure you know the dosage (is it .5mg or 5mg?). Use pill checkers (you can Google them) to make sure that the pills in the bottle are correct. Get all your prescriptions filled at the same pharmacy so they can check for potential interactions. In this day and age, I still can't believe that people just blindly take whatever their doctor prescribes without doing their research. I discovered that one of my antibiotics could have caused my contacts to become permanently discolored. Good thing I did my reading before I took it. Would have been out $800 otherwise. Doctors aren't gods - they're humans.

Everyone is demanding the pharmacist's head, but they are human and they will make mistakes. We as patients need to take responsibility for our healthcare, as well. I simply took the pills back to the pharmacy, explained the mix-up, and got the correct pills. No yelling, no threats of a lawsuit, no drama.

All it takes is a few minutes to do some reading and checking. It could save your life.

What if she didn't know she was pregnant at the time she took the meds......

Women drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes, use drugs, sky dive not knowing they are pregnant. Women do things daily that a pregnant woman shouldn't do. A lot of women don't know they are pregnant when they are.

People do make mistakes. Parents, doctors, teachers, Joe Blow, we are all human. My son was just put on a new medication he is 20 years old. I picked it up for him and I asked the pharmacist every possible question I could. I went over my sons allergies, I asked about possible side effects you name it I asked. I then sat down with my son and we looked it up on the computer. I covered all the bases. It's called being responsible for oneself.

This is a prime example of why I look at our prescriptions carefully when I get home. BEFORE TAKING THEM. I also look up any new prescriptions I am not familiar with on the internet. People are human and make mistakes. I am so sorry this happened to this young woman. What a tragic error.

To drive this home even more, patients must be advocates for themselves. The article said that the woman claimed the pharmacist gave her the wrong drug, implying that the wrong medication was placed in the right bottle, etc., yet reading on, the store implies that this was an error made by a pharmacy technician (worker) and not the pharmacist, claiming that the pharmacy worker pulled the wrong bag containing the medication and gave it to her because name and date of birth were not verified first. And if that is the case, then the pharmacist cannot be help accountable, but will likely suffer in the lawsuit nonetheless. As for patients being their own advocates, that applies across the board. Inserts are put into the bags along with the medications for a reason and this was not an ongoing drug, but an antibiotic, so she would have been unfamiliar with how the drug looked, an even better argument for assuring that what she was putting into her mouth was correct. She is afterall, pregnant, so everything she ingests should be suspect. I sometimes get annoyed when asked my birth date when picking up a prescription, and having to spell my name out, even my first name, which is, by the way, Maureen, but no more. If the pharmacy is making an effort why shouldn't I?

Our pharmacy recently started putting a description of the tablet on the a label, and I ALWAYS check it. For instance, it will say "oval pill marked with I-22". So you can check to make sure that they put the correct pill in the bottle.

Methotrexate is not an "abortion drug" as per MSNBCs misleading & inflammatory headline, either. It's commonly used to treat rheumatoid arthritis as well as used for treating cancer. It simply falls into the category of meds whose side effects dictate that it should not be taken by pregnant women b/c it could cause a miscarriage or birth defects. It is not prescribed to induce a miscarriage AKA spontaneous abortion.

Actually, Scar Tissue, this is exactly what I was prescribed when I was diagnosed with "blighted ovum".. two weeks of not miscarrying, but with my baby still having ceased to grow, they felt I needed this to fully expel everything, that way nothing would fester. Although my pharmacists did say that I shouldn't take this if pregnant..that was hard to hear.

What an idiot! This woman didn't double check to ensure she got the right medicine? I always double check all prescriptions, even for my pets! Make sure it's the right prescription, the right medicine and the right dosage. Yes, the pharmicist made a mistake and there should be some consequences, but everybody makes a mistake. We're human, pharmacists no less so than anyone else.

As a mom-to-be, you have to read labels on all medicines, foods and even toys to make sure they are correct and safe.

Our pharmacy recently started putting a description of the tablet on the a label, and I ALWAYS check it. For instance, it will say "oval pill marked with I-22". So you can check to make sure that they put the correct pill in the bottle.

If she got somebody else' prescription then the description of the pill on the bottle would have matched what was in the bottle. Also, I work at a Safeway pharmacy and I can tell you that I have never heard of any policy to ask the name and birthday TWICE before selling any med. Once-sure, twice, can't hurt, but them saying that the pharmacist broke policy is just a way of throwing him/her under the bus. If you want to get mad at somebody then get mad at the company. My store has seen a significant rise in business this year, but the amount of help is always being cut. We rarely have lunch breaks, let alone the morning and afternoon breaks that many other workers get. The company pushes us to the point of breaking, then quickly places all the blame on you if a mistake is made. I used to work in an assembly line in a factory, the factory had better working conditions than where I work now.

I worked as a pharmacy technician in the mid to late 80s. We had to read the sig on the script correctly: QD means once a day, BID twice, TID three times. QAM once every morning, QPM once every evening. Q8H every 8 hours. Q8Hcfood means every 8 hours with food.

We had to know the amount based on the dosage and length of regime. We had to keep track of overlaps and interactions. We also had to keep track of patients getting schedule 3 or 4 drugs from more than one doctor.

The pharmacist had to double check our work before the meds were handed out. Correct bottle in the bag. Now it is even more strict with the privacy laws.

Human error is just that-human error. Patients always have a responsibility to check the pills to make sure they look the same and read all the labels on the bottle and the insert. Don't just take what the pharmacist hands you. Do some work.

Of course you would sue....why would we expect the user of the pill to read about the pill and its use prior to taking it...that would be silly. Just get home and ram one down the throat...then read about it. The pharmacy is certainly at fault...but this was still preventable, all the way up to the point this dumbass woman took the pill and then decided to read the label.

There are far too many "human errors" in health-care. There are far too many lawsuits, too.

But, in this case, I'd sue them for every penny! It is not the victim's fault, especially not her developing fetus, either.

Experts and professionals live up to a higher standard. They need to figure out and implement a fail-safe procedure. I wish the banks were so careless and deposited a million dollars into my account.

I don't know about everyone else but I read the name and drug on my prescription bottle before putting it in my mouth.

I feel very sorry that this happened and if there are grounds for a suit, then sue.

BUT - PLEASE READ YOUR PRESCRIPTIONS. MISTAKES HAPPEN.

Here in CA, someone sued because he was given the wrong medication and now has to have $450,000 worth of medical services. HE LOST the lawsuit.

Well I know people gonna say something about what I have to say, but, then again I really don't care. I'm thinking she got home and read the label, seen her name was different and decided to fake the whole situation. One thing is for sure when she made it to the hospital, I'm sure they did a toxicology test on her and they will know if she ingested the pill or not.

If someone tries to say maybe they didn't get the correct results that wouldn't fly either, because if she was getting sick already from it, then it was already in her blood system. So wait until the results come back and she if she was lying. I mean really who takes pills just because they're handed to them from anyone?

There definitely has been stranger things happen and the pharmacy is still to blame for the improper prescription, but, there does come a time we need to have some kind of self responsibility. If she is found to be lying then I think they should prosecute her for falsifying a statement.

As far as the statement from someone that maybe she didn't know she was pregnant, that's, a farce too unless she picked up a pregnancy test before going home. Remember she called the hospital and told them she was pregnant.

Good for all of you that you read the prescription on the bottles. You are hereby absolved of all empathy for this young woman.

Methotrexate is not an "abortion drug" as per MSNBCs misleading & inflammatory headline, either. It's commonly used to treat rheumatoid arthritis as well as used for treating cancer. It simply falls into the category of meds whose side effects dictate that it should not be taken by pregnant women b/c it could cause a miscarriage or birth defects. It is not prescribed to induce a miscarriage AKA spontaneous abortion

Actually, it IS an abortion drug. In OB/GYN clinics, it's commonly used for patients with ectopic pregnancies specifically to cause them to miscarry so they dont rupture a fallopian tube.

I'm tired of people suing everytime someone makes an honest mistake and your own actions or inactions contributed to the harm. It's this type of frivolous lawsuit that contributes to rising healthcare costs due to malpractice insurance.

Yes, the pharmacy made a mistake by giving her the wrong bag. But she made the mistake of not reading the name on the bag. Was it her name? No! She should have said, "Hey, this isn't my name." She needs to grow up. We all need to grow up and take responsibility for our own actions.

Now, if the pharmacist had given her bottles labeled correctly, but with the wrong pills in them...well then, that's entirely their mistake and a suit is 100% appropriate.

Nonetheless, that does not mean I want any harm to have happened to the fetus. I hope to God she delivers a healthy baby. And I hope she learns to be her child's best defender in this world...and that means she'll have to read the labels!

Giving someone the wrong medication that will harm or kill her fetus should not be reduced to "it was simply human error". It is negligence. She trusted what is supposed to be a professional pharmacist. She doesn't likely know one medication's name from the next. I would drug test, then fire the idiot who handed her the wrong meds.

These kinds of errors are all too common. The doctor has terrible handwriting, the pharmacy gives the wrong meds. Only expensive lawsuits will force all particpants in health care to make a safer system for patients. Until then, better check your pills.

JM,

If you trust people with your life and the life of your child that they will not make a simple error, you have more issues than being so inept you cannot read a prescription bottle.

Mixing up names happens all the time in every profession. If you want to risk your life or your babies life because you are too "trusting" (ie lazy), to make a 1 second check, you should lose all rights to sue anyone.

Is there proof that she took the meds or is it just her saying she did. Maybe she noticed when she got home it was the wrong RX and looked the meds up on the computer and thought "hey $$$$ lawsuit."

Endo, There are some merits to your beliefs.

Nonetheless, professionals are presupposed to live up to a higher standard. There is an intrinsic trust. Your assumption is that human error is so common that prevention is impossible. I disagree.

As I said, I am not a fan of lawsuits. But, if lawsuits are able to force pharmacies and doctors to check and double check, talk to the patient about the type of medication prescribed, review the risks and confirm the patients prescription (with the patient present), these errors can be reduced. My pharmacist talks to me every time I receive a prescription. I also receive paperwork about the dosage, risks and contraindications. This tedious exercise assures who I am and that I am receiving the right drug.

We don't know, from the article, if the victim was scrutinized by the pharmacist or what her level of English proficiency was.

Finally, I trust that my pilot won't fly while intoxicated. I don't talk to him and ask for a breathalyzer before flying. I trust that my doctor will advise me and prescribe appropriately. I may question his/her reasoning, but I don't ask for their license or school grades. I trust when I get my medication that it is what it says on the bottle. I don't bring the meds to a scientist to prove it's potency or ingredients. When I drink my tap water, I trust that the city supplies safe water. Etc., etc.

Of course, the ultimate responsibility for personal safety ends with the individuals ability to assess risk, but it is not unreasonable that we trust the professional.

JM,

Maybe you get your prescriptions at a small enough place that your pharmacist can see you every time you pick yours up. I know that where I get mine, and most of the places around thee, are busy enough that the pharmacist cannot speak to every customer personally with every purchase. They can answer questions occassionally, but if they were attending to every customer, they would never get any work done at all behind the counter.

I still say that the fault is two fold: The person who put the wrong bottle in the bag and the lady who took it without looking. I have gotten wrong pills twice for my mother. One was a wrong person (same situation) and one was a wrong pill. It ultimately falls on the person who is putting something in their body to hold the pharmacy accountable by checking before taking anything.

SJM: re,

Maybe you get your prescriptions at a small enough place that your pharmacist can see you every time you pick yours up. I know that where I get mine, and most of the places around thee, are busy enough that the pharmacist cannot speak to every customer personally with every purchase.

That's why mistakes happen. If you used the same excuse for airline safety, more planes would go down.

If the pharmacist should check and double check, why cant the person check once.

What does English proficiency have to do with reading your own name?

Check and double check and triple check...mistakes still happen. Pharmacists ARE held to a higher standard but that does not mean perfection. You have no idea how much multitasking a (retail) pharmacist must do. All the research that humans are not good at that mean nothing to those who collect the money. Do any of you realize that pharmacists have had to sue and have states intervene just to get bathroom and meal breaks? And that a pharmacy will hire as many technicians per pharmacist as the state allows, and that all some states say is a reasonable number that one pharmacist can supervise? And, if the mistake was made at the counter by the tech (wrong bag given to customer), how is that even the pharmacist's fault? An Rx is entered into computer and filled and either a tech or pharmacist does that but the pharmacist does the final check of all details. If a tech or cashier pulled the wrong bag and the customer did not look at it, or participate in the double check of the name (maureen, yeah that's me...), then that is a part of the transaction the pharmacist is not involved in, unless the patient asks to speak with pharmacist (google OBRA 1990 if you're interested in more on this, and what retail pharmacies...not the pharmacists...have done to get around it). Mistakes happen people, we are all human. Understand the facts, put blame where it belongs, see if procedures weren't followed or were somehow deficient, and get on with improving the system.

Their promise will only count if they cover better prenatal care to help ensure the infant's health, as well as any childhood health costs that could be related to the wrong medication given.

And what happens to that promise if the mother miscarries? Will Safeway pay for anything then? Especially the mental health costs that the mother will incur as well as any costs realated to her next pregnancy (if she even decides to try again).

Pharmacies have become extremely lax about their policies. I don't even have to show an ID to get my script (adheral), a schedule 2 controlled substance. I'm amazed that this type of thing doesn't happen more frequently.

Glad you are so happy to ignore any responsibility on the expectant mother's behalf to READ THE LABEL, and any inserts that might have come with it.

Two seconds of verifying what she was told she was getting by the doctor, and a comparison with what she was handed by the pharmacist, and red flags go off all over the place.

Yeah, a human pharmacist made a mistake, but a mother was even more lax in HER judgement.

You're assuming she knew the name of the medicine. That's a big one, since doctor's often prescribe something that gets filled generically at the pharmacy, meaning a completely different product name. Most people don't have an in depth knowledge of drug nomenclature.

If she already knows the frequency and the dosage, not paying a lot of attention to the label is completely understandable. Hindsight is lovely, but when a thing has never happened before it's not usually at the forefront of your mind. Especially something as common as an antibiotic, doc says take 1 after breakfast, what else do you need to read?

Capt Tripps:

If she already knows the frequency and the dosage, not paying a lot of attention to the label is completely understandable.

I don't find it understandable at all. I take two regular medications on a daily basis, and every time they are refilled, I check the label to make sure they are the same medication I have been taking, and if they are not, I call the pharmacy (such as if they've changed generic brands, etc).

The pharmacy technician made a mistake, absolutely. But if she gave her the wrong prescription, which it looks like she gave the wrong bag to the wrong customer, why did the woman not verify the name on the prescription before taking it?

Especially something as common as an antibiotic, doc says take 1 after breakfast, what else do you need to read?

You need to verify that the pharmacy did exactly what the prescription told them to do. They are humans, they make errors. I'm highly allergic to certain antibiotics, some of which can kill me, so I always verify that what I'm taking is what my doctor prescribed. And anytime a new medication is prescribed to me, I always verify with the pharmacist about the prescriptions I am taking as well as my allergies (even though they have them in their computer system), to make sure that there will be no interactions or allergic reactions, at least that they can anticipate.

I feel for this woman because not reading the label or paying attention to what you're taking is something people do without any consequences, but there is a level of personal responsibility here.

Yes, the pharmacy technician screwed up, but so did the woman.

Too many people think someone needs to think for them.

I know if I try to curl my hair while taking a bath I could curl it or not need it anymore. I know if I put a cup of hot liquid between my thighs while driving I could wear it. I know if I under cook ground beef I could get sick. If I go too long without a visit to the dentist or take my car in for an oil change I could have problems.

It is my responsibility to think for myself. People are just too lazy!

You're assuming she knew the name of the medicine.

Of course I am, who takes medication without understanding the intent and purpose behind it? Ok, perhaps if she were elderly or totally infirm, but she's a young, PREGNANT, woman, if she can't be expected to pay attention, who should?!

And the pharmacies I deal with hand you literature explaining the generic, if you've gotten one.

doc says take 1 after breakfast, what else do you need to read?

Every piece of paper they hand you, else this is the kind of thing that happens. We have to be expected to take SOME reasonable care!

Well that means that NONE of you will ever make a mistake in your lifetime. Tell me- what's it like being perfect? The pharmacist gets paid big, big bucks not to mess up. On the other hand, the pregnant woman gets criticized for trusting him to do his job. Thank you.

@Hannah - Ignorant people will stay dependent on others. Even professionals make mistakes. It takes a responsible person to know what they're putting into their body.

Hannah:

Of course the pharmacy technician holds responsibility for what happened because she handed the wrong person's prescription to this woman. However, this woman took a medication without even reading to see if her name was on it (which it wasn't). There is a level of personal responsibility there as well.

No one is claiming to be perfect, but this woman can't point the finger completely at the at the pharmacy without looking at herself as well. She should never take a prescription without reading the instructions and information that comes with it first, especially since she was pregnant. No one should do that, whether they are pregnant or not. That's why the bottles come labeled and come with tons of information.

There's always the off chance that a drug can interact with something (like an over the counter drug you're taking) that your doctor or pharmacist may not know about, but you may catch by reading that information. A person needs to be responsible for her own health.

No Hannah, I'm just enough of an adult to admit to them, and accept the consequences of MY actions.

Admittedly, the pharmacy screwed up, and shares blame, but when you are PREGNANT, you must be triply cautious...and she, apparently, wasn't.

It seems that those savvy enough to check their prescription bottle have somehow lost a bit of empathy along the way. However, I doubt they'd be so bold as to say it to this young women's face. But, I could be wrong.

I have empathy for the woman. It must be awful not knowing what the outcome might be, and the possibility of losing her unborn child.

I'm just not willing to heap 100% of the blame onto the pharmacy. Yes, the pharmacy holds a majority of it for giving her the wrong person's prescription, but she should have read it before taking it, especially since she is pregnant. Everyone should do it, although a lot of people don't.

I, too, agree that all should read their prescription bottles. However, I realize, too, that not all people do, especially not young people who may not have been exposed to mistakes by medical professionals. I'm also willing to give the young woman the benefit of the doubt - she was prescribed an antibiotic that she most likely was not familiar with the name of and you don't get to take the actual presription home with you to check for accuracy; for a doctor to prescribe an antibiotic to a pregnant woman says to me that she must have been pretty ill (they don't like to prescribe ANYTHING to pregnant women), which may have prevented her from reviewing the bottle thoroughly; the woman the prescription was meant for had a similar name that, with a quick glance while ill, she may not notice the difference; if she did notice the difference and it was similar enough she may have thought it a spelling error. Who knows, but she gets the benefit of my doubt.

As for those who have suggested she's making it up, it's quite a reach that such a series of unfortunate events happening to an outrageously opportunisic and abortion-seeking person would take place to allow it. IMO, when I saw an intereview with her she seemed emotionally drained and exhausted, and not overtly emotional, as someone would be if they were putting on a show of grief.

Already been told by the lawyer what not and what to say. So as not to damage the lawsuit. Convenient to say the least.

Sues for what? The pharmacy made a mistake, but she was careless. Why would you randomly take a pill without making sure it was the correct one? Pharmacies and doctor's make mistakes, this is a fact of life. If you are told to take an antibiotic and you are given an abortion pill, who's fault is it that you took it?

How about the tort of negligence or starters

@Endo - yeah, i think this is a pretty obvious cause for a lawsuit. I know there are a lot of frivolous lawsuits but this one is a legitimate reason.

Endo...when doctors and pharmacies make mistakes, they usually get sued. Doctors and pharmacists are dealing with people's lives here. You act like it's ok that they "make mistakes". This isn't a fast food restaurant...it's not like forgetting to throw extra ketchup on your burger.

After further research, I found that the prescription bottle stated the correct medicane; the pharmacist put the wrong pills in the bottle.

Reaves,

What research did you do? The girl told ABC News another woman's name was on the bottle.

This is still tragic that the pharmacy messed up, but a simple check to make sure it was her prescription would have prevented this, as well.

Have you ever seen how much a doctor, nurse, and other medical professionals have to pay for insurance because of the increase in lawsuits? My sister-in-law, as a nursing student, paid almost as much for her malpractice insurance as she did in tuition to go to school.

I don't like lawsuits as the answer, we do it too much. I think Safeway's offer to her was very reasonable, the pharmacist should be cited with written documentation and records reviewed regularly for a long time after to ensure compliance, and the woman should take responsibility for not reading the information on the pills.

I work in customer service, and easily 90% of the "problems" I fix for customers come from them NOT READING the information on our site. As soon as I point out where it states information, they're fine. Easily the most common thing I hear from customers is "I'm sorry, I didn't read that."

Buying a product online? Getting a prescription? Applying for a new job? Voting? READ THE INFORMATION PROVIDED! We'd have so many fewer problems.

There is no doubt about it. She will be given a monetary sum for her pain and suffering. But there is a cap on medical law suits now, so it won't be in the millions.

As for the poster who has suspicions. I have my suspicions too. Something seems off kilter in her story. But either way, it has been brought to the attention of the media and now the Store and the Pharmacist have to pay up.

If the child is born with abnormalities the child will probably be awarded medical care for life.

It's tragic (if it's true) and she will be compensated.

It was nice to see the Store taking full responsibility. Most of the time they deny and any wrong doing.

Ryan,

The pharmacy made a mistake, and they need to adjust their policy to try and prevent this. At the same time, how hard is it to check your meds?

Your name and your medication is not on the bottle. Who's fault is it that you took the pill? It is not the pharmacy's. This mistake was so easily preventable by the person taking the medication that she should not be able to sue.

The pharmacy was not following protocols already in place. The professionally educated and licensed pharmicist missed that the similar name was not hers. It's not unreasonable that an woman six weeks into her pregnancy (a stage that leaves most women extremely exhausted) and ill could have missed it when she glanced at the bottle.

What it is prescribed for is one thing, the side effects are another. If this drug can cause early pregnancy termination or birth defects, and it clearly states that as a side effect, what difference what the drug is prescribed for when it is mistakenly given to a pregnant woman?

What's laughable about this story, if there is anything to laugh at, is that fact that Safeway stated that they were going to cover her medical costs in anything she had to deal with regarding this mistake. What good will that do if this woman's body aborts her child? I think Safeway will be paying a tad more than the costs of her medical expenses.

this entire situation is regrettable and sad for sure. As a pregnant woman, she should have been on high alert before taking ANY medication.

As for methotrexate - it was designed to treat many diseases - but it IS commonly used for ectopic pregnancies and abortions. Read before you post and keep to topic. This isnt about sensationalism in journalism! It's a story about human error on the part of a pharmacist and carelessness on the part of the ptient!

luvmy2boys writes: what difference what the drug is prescribed for when it is mistakenly given to a pregnant woman?

The diagnosis makes a huge difference here because the dosage of methotrexate prescribed for say, rheumatoid arthritis, is really very low, while the dosage prescribed for say, chemotherapy, is quite high. The probability of abortion from a single pill would increase directly with dosage; the probability of birth defects would also increase with dosage, but does also depend upon the stage of fetal development. FWIW (not much, IMHO), I fathered a child (healthy, bright) while on daily low dose methotrexate for RA.

vbmom is wrong. Tubals -YES- but is it NOT commonly used for abortion. As a matter of fact clinics in the business of providing abortions as a main service do not employ this medication. a medical provider in this litigious day and age would be loathe to use methotrexate except in the very EARLIEST of pregnancies (still implanting) because of the failure rate. It IS SENSATIONALIST to keep calling it an abortion drug instead of focusing on how med errors can and should be prevented. Abortion is a hot media topic. Med errors less so.

it IS an apostrophe, typed on a forum where most people's grammer and spelling is questionable on a good day. chill. (or are you going to come at me for not capitalizing, and putting parenthsis in the wrong place?)

Warning!! Warning!! Grammar and spelling police!!!!

Methotrexate IS used to for medical abortions!! Get your facts straight first before you come on here treating people like they are idiots. Maybe you should look the medication up before you start ranting like you know it all. This is why the story is making headlines! Pregnant lady unknowingly take meds sometimes used for abortion.

Glad to hear that you are a doctor. With that said:

Medical terminology: Methotrexate is commonly used (generally in combination with misoprostol) to terminate pregnancies during the early stages (i.e., as an abortifacient). It is also used to treat ectopic pregnancies.[7] In the case of early missed miscarriage (particularly a blighted ovum), in which fetal demise has occurred but the body has not expelled the fetus, methotrexate may be used to help the body begin the miscarriage process.

Oh no, Emma put in an apostrophe where it didn't belong. That CLEARLY means she has no credibility whatsoever. <insert sarcasm>

Emma, if a drug is used for abortions, that automatically makes it an abortion drug. If it is used for arthritus, then that subsequently also makes it an arthritus drug. Ease up.

Emma,

Please stop saying it's not used for abortions, it is.

Please stop spreading false information!

http://www.webmd.com/baby/methotrexate-for-ectopic-pregnancy

Methotrexate for ectopic pregnancy

Examples

Generic Name

methotrexate

Methotrexate is typically given by injection. Two injection sites are sometimes used to administer one dose. This method increases absorption of all of the medicine.

Methotrexate can be given by mouth. But ectopic pregnancy treatment success rates are lower with oral use than with injections.¹

How It Works

Methotrexate stops the growth of rapidly dividing cells, such as embryonic, fetal, and early placenta cells.

During the week that you have methotrexate injections, your pregnancy hormone levels (human chorionic gonadotropin, or hCG) are tested several times. Your doctor will look for a drop in hCG levels, which is a sign that the pregnancy is ending (hCG levels sometimes rise during the first few days of treatment, then drop).

• If your hCG levels have dropped enough after 1 week, you are then tested on a weekly basis until they are low enough to suggest that the pregnancy has safely ended. This usually takes about a month but can take more than 3 months.
• If your hCG levels aren't dropping enough after 1 week, you will be given another dose of methotrexate. Your hCG levels will be monitored as they were after the first dose.
• If your hCG levels continue at higher levels, or if your doctor becomes concerned about tubal rupture, surgery will be needed to remove the ectopic growth.

Why It Is Used

Methotrexate can be used to:

• End an early ectopic pregnancy.



• Prevent the growth of any embryonic or fetal cells that are left behind after surgery to end an ectopic pregnancy.

It is also used to treat certain types of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and as part of an induced abortion.

How Well It Works

Methotrexate treatment is most likely to succeed:

• When your pregnancy hormone (hCG) levels are low (less than 5,000).
• During the first 6 weeks of pregnancy.
• When the embryo has no heart activity.

Methotrexate treatment can be given as a single shot or as several injections. If an ectopic pregnancy continues after 2 or 3 doses of methotrexate, surgical treatment is needed to remove the ectopic pregnancy.

An ectopic pregnancy is when the egg implants itself into the fallopian tube. There is obviously not enough rm in a tube for fetal development to proceed. Eventually the fetus will grow too lg to fit in the tube & the tube will rupture.

This is not only extremely painful, but it can cause uncontrolled hemorrhaging, septicemia, & death for the pregnant woman. An ectopic pregnancy seems to be less often caught at a stage where methotrexate would do any good. I know of 2 women who've had an ectopic pregnancy; both ended up being trundled off in an ambulance w/ a ruptured fallopian tube & nearly died.

An ectopic pregnancy is not a "choice" abortion, unless you're insane & prefer to die in horrible pain for no reason. The fetus is not viable & never will be viable.

If it's not caught very early & terminated, a pregnant woman will suffer horrifically from the severe pain of the ruptured fallopian tube & can die. It also leaves her w/ just 1 functioning (hopefully) fallopian tube if she wants to get pregnant again, so her chances of doing so are slashed by 50% if an ectopic pregnancy proceeds to the rupture stage. There is nothing to do then but surgically remove the tube.

So quit screaming "abortion drug" at the top of your lungs already. It's a misnomer & if that info came from Wikipedia, well, there you go. There is absolutely no chance that a fetus will develop enough in the fallopian tube to live. None. Methotrexate is given in the cases where an ectopic pregnancy is caught early on, to save the pregnant woman from having a surgical procedure where the fallopian tube must be removed in order to stop it from rupturing & causing greater complications.

This is why ppl are saying it's not an abortion drug. It's a drug that can save 50% of a pregnant woman's fertility plus her life w/ successful use. It is not used in any other case but non-viable ectopic pregnancies.

If the pregnancy was allowed to proceed there would be no baby at the end of it b/c it would spontaneously abort itself anyway. Methotrexate is used to minimize the damage of the miscarriage that will occur unless the pregnancy is terminated.

This is one of those "save the life of the mother" cases. It can also save her fertility for future successful pregnancies.

As an ex-pharmacy tech, I can assure you that there are numerous medications that are prescribed to treat various symptoms. Chantix, for example, was given to psychiatric patients and it was noted that it subsided the patients urge to smoke. Now it is given as an aid to quit smoking.

I suggest that everyone check and double check before taking any medication. If the pill looks different, as they sometimes change, look it up before ingesting it. Never have full faith in your pharmacist. It is a tech's job to fill the RX, and the pharmacists checks the techs work. If a similar looking pill is mistakenly used to fill an RX, we can see from this story the possible consequences.

I did find one poster's thought interesting that she may not have taken the drug, and said that she did. It would be extremely sad if this woman did take the drug, and what it could possibly do to the baby, however, I find it equally disturbing that there is a possibility that she did not take the drug, and is using this for attention and $.

Go ahead and take methotraxate when you have a normal pregnacy and see if it doesn't abort the fetus :eyesroll: It is indicated for abortion.

AND NO IT DIDN"T COME FROM WIKI IT CAME FROM WEBMD..

Again and again people on here making comments that anyone with google could prove otherwise. Please stop spreading lies.

Zip it

http://www.webmd.com/baby/methotrexate-for-ectopic-pregnancy

Actually I need to say methotraxate is not indicated for early term abortion but it has undergone clinical trials for the indication and it is used for it. As for ectopic i'm unsure

it is used in several countries for early term abortions..

http://www.fwhc.org/abortion/mtxinfo.htm

Methotrexate and misoprostol protocol

To date, there is no FDA approved protocol for the use of methotrexate and misoprostol to terminate an early pregnancy. However, a number of clinical trials have shown that the methotrexate and misoprostol is approximately 95% effective in terminating very early pregnancies (<49 days' gestation). Methotrexate is readily available to physicians in the US who are legally permitted to utilize the evidence-based protocol (called "off label" use). Professional organization guidelines also allow these practices.

The most common evidence-based regimen begins with either the intramuscular injection (50 mg/m²) or oral administration (50 mg) of methotrexate (Day 1). Three to seven days later the woman self-administers 800 µg (micrograms) of misoprostol vaginally at home. Follow-up with a provider occurs approximately one week after the methotrexate administration (Day 7). If the abortion has not occurred (as determined by vaginal ultrasound examination) the dose of misoprostol is repeated and the woman returns for final evaluation four weeks after the methotrexate administration (Day 28). However, if at the first follow-up visit (Day 7), embryonic cardiac activity is noted on ultrasound, the woman is given an additional dose of misoprostol and asked to return on Day 14. If the abortion is not complete on either the Day 28 or the Day 14 visit, vacuum aspiration should be performed.

Clinical studies conducted in the United States have shown that intramuscular and oral methotrexate administration result in similar completion rate. Although some protocols have instructed women to moisten the misoprostol before insertion, subsequent research has shown that this practice does not statistically improve efficacy [2].

From all of the comments on here, this type of error seems fairly common. I knew a girl who was trying to get pregnant, and her doctor gave her an injection to get her period started (she had a really looong cycle and so finally they had to jump-start it for her). Instead, they accidentally gave her injectable birth control that lasts up to a year. My heart broke for her . . .

maybe its just the area i was raised in, with pharmacies at the hospital, at the clinics, and 2 or 3 around town to boot, but i have never in my life seen a pharmacistrush to fill a prescription, not once. even at Walgreen's i can tour the entire store at least 3 times, and in most cases still had plenty of time to spare. as they said in the article, it was a mix up in the names that led to the problem. also each time i ever got medicine at the pharmacy, they always went over the dosage i was to take, side effects, and pointed out the number to call if i was having any be there was a problem. it would seem in this case that part might have been skipped, especially being had they done this, the mistake would have been caught immediately. also, it depends as well what name was on the bottle. if it was hers, yes i would defiantly sue... if it was someone else name... well then a part of that responsibility, sad to say lies on the person taking the medication. cant remember a time i didnt check out the label on my medications no matter how or what they were...usually something for anti biotics or pain, and non addicitcive, prior to takeing them. very important to do, even with a trusted pharmacy.

@Megalodon

It's fortunate that the health care professionals in your area take the time to go over everything, but it is not the norm. Nor is reading the label and all of the instructions provided. The stats bare that out. Estimates are that more than half of people do not take their medications correctly. Far more often than not, people refuse counseling at the window and the pharmacist, concerned about their ever-increasing workload, will probably not try to push counseling. So an opportunity to catch such an error is lost.

Seeking the truth - thank you for sticking up for the pharmacists. As a pharmacist, I am pressured to hurry up all the time and now with drive-thrus in the pharmacy, people are thinking we can go as fast as a McDonalds. It's nice to hear someone understand how being thorough is important.

well i am sry, but if you dont take the time to at least read the label on a bottle of medicine, you get what you get, and your own fault. not to do so is just plain being ignorant, and saying i dont give a crap. you ALWAYS ALWAYS! look at the label, at least that.... there is no words to describe being beyond ignorant. people act like a fool, and want someone else to pay for it. you dont care about your health to read a label, but 1st in line to start sueing over your own ignorance, lol. fools.

Megalodon, the prescription stated the correct medicane; the pharmacist put the wrong pills in.

Silva says she took a pill and checked the bottle after becoming sick. She was rushed to the hospital.

well it sounds to me, she was just to ignorant to check the bottle before taking the medication.... well that is untill it was too late. that being the case, she is just as at fault for taking the pill, as it was for the pharmacy to give her the wrong bottle. like i said before ALWAYS make sure you are getting what the doc is prescribing you, that it is YOUR NAME and ADDRESS on the bottle and the contents listed on that label sre what you are to be TAKING. if its anything other than what your doc told you to take, call or see the pharmacy immediately PRIOR to taking. if you ask for the GENERIC drug, make sure its the right one.

thing is people have to have someone hold their hand for almost everything today. that was the reason the put 3 sets of instructions with the meds you get. because sometimes things happen. people are not perfect, but human. but to be ignorant, or an odiot, there is only so much one can do imo, and well, i am surprised some people can make walking down the street solo, without uncle sam there holding their hand, making sure they dont fall, or walk into traffic....and yes we see enough of that too now dont we?

I am a pharmacist for a major chain here in the U.S. and with the hours I am allowed to staff and the "budgeted" prescriptions I have to fill to keep those hours I must fill/check just over 30 prescriptions an hour! Would the Amercan public feel safe that I work 12 hour shifts (with no lunch break) and then take less then 2 minutes for each prescription? Of course I am also on the phone while I check them and have to talk to patients and deal with corporate programs. Yes the patients are responsible for reading the bottle and the papers that come with it. But until the public realizes the conditions many pharmacists work under, this will continue to happen. Maybe next time you go to your pharmacy as a patient you won't bang on the counter asking for faster service or moan that it isn't ready in 5 minutes.

@Jenn,

i do feel for ya, i do. some people take a pharmacy to be a fast food joint for drugs, just because there is a counter present. They dont understand that messing up can cost a life, or long term injury to organs and so on. rather let somone do their job, they demand the service. i wont say i have never been impatient, but i can say if i feel this way, i do something to pre occupy myself taking a tour of the store, or something, asking what the wait time might be when i drop the request, not to rush the person, but i also feel sitting there looking agitated wont make someone work harder, and if it does, it makes a longer day for them, not to mention distracting. also goes along the lines imo, of respecting people.

hope you have better days than you have had so far, and may a smile. :)

So I guess you were never in a hurry and just took your pill quickly, not thinking. Specially an antibiotic. If you have an infection, you just want to hurry and start taking them so you feel better. Oh, and the pharmicist can make a mistake, but the woman can't? Granted, she should have checked the bottle, but who knows, maybe she was rushing to get to work or something.

@shell,

no not one time have i EVER taken any medication without reading the label before hand. even if it was a refill, i read it, and more than once. it's in my hand when i open the bottle, is it too much like work to take 3 seconds if that to confirm something? so so simple, but ooooh the agony of the work!? no excuse for this woman, especially being she is/was pregnant! even more reason to read the label, and be sure of any possible side effects... or is that too darn hard as well?

I'm glad to see that the majority of posters find some of the fault with the woman who took the meds. There is no way, even more when I was pregnant, would I just take a pill and assume anything.

I just had a prescrption filled. I read the pamphlet 3 times and the bottle a few times and then matched the pill to the description of the pill.

Megalodon, the prescription stated the correct medicane; the pharmacist put the wrong pills in.

Where did you hear this Reeves? Are you making things up?

read the article.... i also copied and pasted the same in post #6.5 from this same article you and i both read.

Silva says she took a pill and checked the bottle after becoming sick. She was rushed to the hospital.

meaning, she didnt check the bottle untill after she took the pill, and started to feel sick, also meaning there is no mention it was the wrong medication in the bottle, the wrong bottle to the person who was taking the medication, and this said person did not realise it, untill AFTER she looked at the bottle. guessing then after reading the label, THEN read about the side effects, then was rushed to the hospital.... but do indeed post where it said the it was the wrong pills in the right bottle for all of us will you?

Methotrexate is NOT an abortion drug. It is a chemotherapy drug that is also used to treat autoimmune disorders and in some cases, terminate pregnancy. The article does not say what the original prescription was supposed to be treating, but chances are if there was more than one dose in the bottle (which is the only way I can imagine it getting mixed up with an antibiotic that you would usually take for several days) it was NOT for causing an abortion.

The pharmacist did not make the mistake. The cashier gave the precription to the wrong patient because they had the same last name and similar first names. By all means, the pharmacy should be held accountable but the pharmacist should not have their license revoked. And I promise you it won't happen.

This is a mistake that happens quite often but could be prevented by asking for the patients address (or any identifying marker) when giving them their prescription. With that being said, EVERYONE should check to make sure they have the correct name on their prescription--we need to ALL be held accountable!

I am a 3rd year pharmacy student and have some insight to this issue. In this day and age, pharmacies are paid PER PRESCRIPTION; therefore, the more prescriptions filled, the more money is made. While money is not the main concern, patients still want their Rx filled "right now" and do not realize what all goes on behind the counter. In the pharmacy, there is a constant rush to fill fill fill. This is something that definitely needs to be addressed.

Its great that everyone has an opinion on whom to blame and on ruining someone's reputation and career! Rarely is it the pharmacist that hands the customer the medication. But for God's sake! The patient didnt read the bottle that had someone else's name on it!

I feel terrible for the mother - but let's not get on the lawsuit bandwagon when the error was not caught prior to taking the pill!

Methotrexate is a great drug to treat cancer - but it also has other uses including abortions! Dont comment on things and look foolish!

vbmom take your own advice. methotrexate is not FDA approved for abortion. It is an ANTIMETABOLITE. To stop rapidly dividing cells and prevent rupture it may be used to prevent further growth in a tubal implantation. find me ONE doctor you know who has used methotrexate to induce abortion in a viable pregnancy and I will say you get to lecture others on blogs instead of you yourself looking foolish.

It may not be FDA-approved for abortions, but it is in fact used for abortions.

Here's what they say at http://www.fwhc.org/abortion/mtxinfo.htm. FWHC stands for "Feminist Women's Health Clinic."

"Methotrexate (MTX) is a chemotherapy agent that has been used for many years in the treatment of cancer because it affects cells that are rapidly dividing. In a Methotrexate (MTX) Abortion, it stops embryonic cells from dividing and multiplying and is a non-surgical method of ending pregnancy in its early stages.Within a few days or weeks of receiving an injection of Methotrexate (MTX) at the clinic, the the pregnancy ends through an experience similar to an early miscarriage.

Methotrexate is a FDA approved drug, but is not labeled for use in the termination of pregnancy. It has been successfully used since 1982 in a single dose to treat ectopic (tubal) pregnancies (where the fertilized egg is embedded in the fallopian tube instead of the uterus). In 1996-97, FWHC participated in clinical trials with the University of Washington to study MTX for Medical Abortion. The study showed MTX alone to be effective and we continue to offer it as an option to women at our clinics."

Alice, all the abortion clinics who offer medically induced abortions use methotrexate.

I agree with the Student Pharmacist. The fault was on the part of both the cashier and the woman who took the pill. I have caught errors twice with my mothers pills. once where they filled with the wrong pill (a lower dose of one they had already given me) and once where they had given us someone elses meds. It was caught as I was filling her weekly dosing case, so she never got any of them, but in each case it was the fault of two people, not just one.

There are suppsed to be two people who check the prescriptions, in most pharmacies anyway, to ensure that the proper meds are filled. And, at least the ones I've gotten scripts filled at, all use scanners to match the pill your picking up to the one you dropped off. I know that some pharmacies don't have those, but they also have a lower fill volume, so they should have a lower mistake rate.

She should have checked the bottle before taking it, especially being pregnant. I check my bottles every month, and I have been on the same pills for going on three or four years now, to make sure that they fill them the right way, or that I don't mistakenly get someone elses bottles because I know that everyone is human and it's possible.

And knowing so much about being a pharmacist, you would never make a mistake.

Mistakes do not negate responsibility. If someone was playing with a gun near you, and shot you, they would still be prosecuted, with or without your voice on the matter. Negligence is a legal term.

Reaves:

And what of the negligence of the woman? She didn't even bother to read that the wrong name was on the label before taking the prescription.

Yes, the technician screwed up by giving her the wrong prescription, but the woman who didn't even bother to read the bottle holds some responsibility as well.

Can we pardon you for being stupid as well?

Yes because turnkey wasn't stupid, but you are an ass, and for that I cannot pardon you.

Why is Turnkey stupid? I'm kind of skeptical about this woman too. Good come back Dmegson.

Not that this poor woman is to blame, but yes, I second that: read everything! And check the pills, too. The scrip bottle contains a description of what the tablets/product should look like (e.g., "purple side: 1 P 41" for a purple pill with those numbers on it). My children have been given the wrong medicine several times by our pharmacy, but thank God, I've always caught it before giving it to them.

I now open the bags and bottles at the pharmacy counter before I even leave the store to avoid having to drive all the way back if they've made a mistake. Unfortunately, we live in such a totally impersonal world that we have to do our own jobs as well as everybody else's to keep our families safe these days.

My prayers go out to this woman and her baby; I hope they will be all right.

Why do you go back to that pharmacy, if you have received wrong prescriptions? Once would be enough for me to look elsewhere for prescriptions.

Just wanted to state that first you assume everyone can read, especially the language of perscription literature. Secondly...not everyone speaks/reads english. I would hope they could print in different languages but I don't know?

Assimilate. We are the Borg.

I'm sure if she couldn't speak English or read a stink would be made about how she was discriminated against for her lack.

Haggi: We moved to this area two years ago. I had a stellar pharmacy back home. I'm now on my THIRD pharmacy here and they have ALL made mistakes. My insurance will only cover certain pharmacies and makes it really hard for me to transfer any existing prescriptions. It's a really, awful overpopulated area where nobody gives a fig about anything, and that's what you get for service. I'd give the world to go home again, but that's not in my cards.

And yes, if you can't read, it would be difficult to check your scripts--and pretty much follow up on anything in your life. The pharmacies around here offer a choice of several "popular" languages if you ask (assuming they can understand you asking, I guess!). One more reason that learning English in an English-speaking country is really a prudent idea.

i agree with you all the way. even if its a simple drug that isnt a narcotic for pain, or simple anti-biotic you have taken a dozen times before like penicillin.

Taking responsibility for one's health should be taught in high school as health 101, or Living past twenty for dummies. We all should question the water out of our taps and certainly anything a company with an attorney on retainer hands us. When someone tells me that their friend or family died young I ask, "did he/she just come back from the doctor?" Invariably that is the case.

Simple answer, because she was "too busy" and "didn't have the time" and "couldn't be bothered". As someone that takes 3 medications, none of which I publicize, I am always inundated with the booklets I receive, the labels and precautions, and the pills themselves. A majority of the people today are just too self-absorbed and too self-important and THAT is what prevented her from looking at the black writing on the white papers.. she was just too busy..

Or she had already gone over everything with her doctor and didn't have a medical degree or know the names of various drugs and their generics. Imagine someone trusting the professionals they are dealing with to do their jobs correctly. The nerve of the woman.

she knew enough after taking the pill and starting to feel sick to THEN READ the label, so not going to buy into the illeterate, medical degree bs excuse... she didnt read the label, she didnt read 1 of the 3 copies of how to take, when to take,(also on the label of a bottle, and every bottle, along with the name of the drug in the bottle), and not until she DID do that, well then, pity me? not a chance... the bottle is in your hand when you open it, if your too stupid to look at it to make sure you understand, or other than you get nominated for the Darwin Award.

for exsample when i had to start taking meds for my high blood pressure. i made sure from the doc what to exspect. i talked to the woman at the pharmacy and made sure what to exspect. i read the caution slips as to what to exspect, and even looked at the bottle to make sure all the info jived with everything i was told, AND if not mistaken, called the docs office to make double triple sure, that because i went with the generic brand, i wasnt going to fall over dead. maybe a bit over cautious... but hey, thats what these people are being paid to do, make sure you dont die taking medication. if that wasnt the case, you could buy a lot of stuff over the counter, that isnt addictive, just by name. but most medicine you get from the pharmacy has side effects, and so on, and its YOUR responsibility as well to make sure what that medicine does, is going to do, and how its going to make you feel and so on. its called being an adult. This wonam now i bet will read every label on every prescription she gets from now on, as well the side effects and dosage, and what to do if, page(s), if not, just goes to show you the ignorance some people have by not being able to learn from mistakes.

This thought also crossed my mind. I pay attention to the names on the bottles and the pills in them. One time when I got a refill they had substituted Generic Brand X with Generic Brand Y, same medication but the lettering on the pills was different so I checked with the pharmacist to make sure they were the right stuff.

People not reading medication labels is a huge problem. A large number of Tylenol overdoses are unintentional, caused by people who take multiple meds with Tylenol in them and not realizing how large of a total dose they are getting.

I could not agree more. If I take something, I read the label every time I pick up a bottle to make sure I'm taking the right thing. Heck I even do that when giving the dog medication. It's unfortunate that a lot of people in this country no longer take responsibility for themselves. They feel it's someone else’s job to protect them from harm in every situation. Get real; it's called common sense and due diligence. Now if the wrong medication was in the bottle, then that would be a entirely different story as there would be no way she would know that.

I truly feel sorry for the woman and for the child if it is born, but in this case she needs to accept some of the blame and in the end, she is the one ultimately responsible as she could have prevented this. The fact that she is suing the pharmacy is ridiculous and its things like this that causes medical care to be so costly.

next you will have to take a competency test, and if you fail, someone has to administer your medication personally.... next it will be useless gov warnings from the surgeon general warning on packs of gum "WARNING!, chewing this product, and walking, or other types of activity could be hazardous to your heath. be sure to consult a medical physician, or mental therapist prior to use to test for proper hand/eye/foot coordination prior to use!"

While this is very sad, the main reason people don't read the literature that comes with their prescription meds is that THERE'S TOO MUCH OF IT. We need a "Cliff's notes" version of the medication inserts and then back that up with the full version.

Thanks to our current "sound byte" culture, the average person's attention span is probably no more than 30 seconds. This is way too important, and I agree with other posters on this board that not enough emphasis is placed on the importance of taking personal responsibility for your medications.

BunnySlayer:

While this is very sad, the main reason people don't read the literature that comes with their prescription meds is that THERE'S TOO MUCH OF IT.

The reason there is so much literature is because of our litigious society. They have to include all of the information, side effects, etc, because if they don't, someone will sue after using the medication if something wasn't mentioned in the literature. I don't think it being too long is a good enough excuse not to read it.

I know that's why people don't like to read it, and most people don't read it, but it doesn't justify it.

there're more abortion drugs out there than just RU-486.

Methotrexate is not intended for pregnant women. It can cause miscarriages.

Its also used to treat precancerous conditions of the uterus (endometrial hyperplasia, etc..)

Why all the shouting about it being called an 'abortion pill'? Just call it an abortifacient, and be done with it.

The main use of methotrexate is for treatment of various cancers and autoimmune disease. Is it also the choice treatment for ectopic pregnancies (spares the fallopian tube therefore doesn't cause infertility). It does cause an abortion, but to keep calling it an abortion drug is incredibly misleading. Is it used in abortions, yes but is also widely used for non-abortion reasons. To keep calling it an abortion drug is inflammatory.

On a side note, don't ever go to a Catholic hospital if you do have an ectopic pregnancy. The Catholic church views the use of methotrexate as an abortion, while surgery is not. Mind you an ectopic pregnancy is a nonviable pregnancy and allowed to continue can be life threatening to the mother.

It is not inflamitory. Several clinical trials have been made in order to get an indication for early term abortions!

Heck just looking at the name would have told her it wasn't for her! It still doesn't give a pass to the people whom made this mistake, but, she would have not ingested the drug in the first place.

Besides I'm just a little skeptical about her even taking the drug. Wait for the toxicology test and see if in fact she actually took it. I'm thinking quick money for her is the motive, heck a lot of people would try it in this economy.

I do the same. My docs handwriting is atrocious, so I have to ask when he changes anything what he's putting me on, what dose and how often so I cna make sure the pharmacy gets the proper info, then when I pick it up, I double check it to make sure they have it right.

Main thing is, everyone is human, they're gonna make mistakes. Nobody's perfect.

That's true, you do, but you also take a second to double check every time you go for an RX bottle, even if it's a med you've had for a long time. My husband and i both have prescriptions, i don't really care to take his heart meds, and i'm pretty sure he doesn't want to take my antidepressant, both of which could cause problems to the other. and yes, i have an idea how awful she must have been feeling.

I had the worst morning sickness with my first and was hospitalized because I was so dehydrated, but I never took anything that I didn't double check what it was. Even in the hopsital I ask them everytime what I was getting and WHY..even though I felt horribleand wanted relief! Doctors and Pharmacists are human as WE ALL are and yes some safety procedures must have been overlooked which should be dealt with. I am so tired of people not taking responsibility for themselves and always passing the blame in this sue happy society..READ the bottle and infornation you are given (thats why the give it to you) BEFORE taking anything! If she would have just looked at the bag before leaving the pharmacy this would have been avoided.

I live everyday with a condition that can be equated to constant flu or morning sickness feeling. Constant nausea, abdominal pain (both get worse after eating), dehydration, dizzyness. I still make sure that I check all my meds when I pick them up, or ask what is given to me, if I'm able, when I'm in the hospital. If she was well enought o pick up her own meds from the pharmacy, she was well enough to double check them.

It doesn't starve it to death! It stops the cells (b/c that's all it is at this pt is a tiny clump of cells lodged in the wrong spot) from continuing to divide & grow. And it's done to save the mother b/c the fetus will never be viable.

It by NO means starves it to death!!! It INHIBITS (STOPS) DNA and RNA synthesis (formation).

The drug does cause a woman to abort. Whatever it is used for, and there are many uses for this drug, it can cause a woman to abort. Whether you call it, "absorbing the tissue" or whatever, the baby no longer exists.

That would be pharmacy school, not medical school.

*shrugs*