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Discussion: Pregnant Woman Mistakenly Given Abortion Pill
FORT LUPTON, Colo. ? A pregnant Colorado woman mistakenly given an abortion drug by a pharmacist faces an excruciating wait to find out the fate of her unborn child.
A pharmacist at a Safeway supermarket in Fort Lupton gave Mareena Silva the drug methotrexate last week. The drug, intended for another woman, is used in chemotherapy and to terminate early-stage pregnancies.
Silva, who is six weeks pregnant, told KMGH-TV in Denver that she took a pill and checked the bottle after becoming sick. She was rushed to the hospital.
Doctors say Silva could miscarry or have a baby with birth defects.
"For all this to happen now, it's really overwhelming to know that I have to come home and sit and wait," Silva said in an interview with the station.
Safeway issued a statement that said policies and procedures meant to prevent medication errors were not adhered to, and that the company is redoubling efforts to ensure they are followed. Those procedures include asking twice for the patient's full name and date of birth before handing out medication.
"We have extended our sincere apologies to Ms. Silva and offered to pay any medical expenses incurred as a result of the prescription error," Safeway's statement said. "We understand the anxiety this has caused and the difficulty of Ms. Silva's situation."
Silva told KMGH that the apology didn't change anything.
"Sorry is not going to cut it. I'm going to have to deal with this a long time," she said.
A woman who answered the door at Silva's apartment Tuesday said she had moved out and wouldn't talk to the media anymore based on the advice of an attorney. A message left with the woman for Silva was not immediately returned.
Fort Lupton is a small agricultural community on the eastern plains of Colorado, about 35 miles north of Denver.
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Information from: KMGH-TV, http://www.thedenverchannel.com
Re: Discussion: Pregnant Woman Mistakenly Given Abortion Pill
I completely 100% agree. Oh, they'll pay her expenses, how nice. This case, to me, would be the epitome of "emotional damages".
My Ovulation Chart
This. And it is rare that I agree with suing as an approriate course of action. But this is BS. No apology and no amount of money can fix that.
My question is: did she not read the rx to make sure she was given the correct meds before taking them? I always check the stuff attached to the rx envelope and the bottle itself to make sure it has my name on it and is the correct meds.
I am not saying that the pharmacy should not be held responsible for their screw up but there should also be some personal accountability as far as the patient double checking after you get your prescription questioning both your doctor and phamacist if you feel something is not right.
I'm curious as to HOW this happened. Was the tech drunk or just lazy?
Do you pay attention to the pills you're taking? Ex: Making sure they match the description on the Rx.
We are totally on the same page.
And what did her dr prescribe to her that she was taking (or really needed to take) at 6 weeks PG? I didn't take anything other than the occassional tylenol until I was into my 2nd tri.
Not excusing it at all, but another article I read that had more details state it wasn't "the abortion pill" it was medication that should not be taken by a pregnant woman. And the two patients' last names were the same, plus they had similar first names. Still, policies and procedures were clearly not followed and it's inexcusable.
Hold up. Homegirl didn't even check that it was HER NAME?!
I agree with both of these things. She definitely should have double checked what they gave her. I would do that anyway, but especially pregnant, I would triple check what I was prescribed, what I was given, and whether it was safe for pregnant women.
How do we know it was labeled what it was?
This is what gave me that impression:
Like everyone else had said, not that it excuses the horrible mistake, but damn girl... check the bottle BEFORE you take the pill.
Also crazy abortion rights lady in me hopes that this doesn't get people all riled up about banning an abortion inducing pill because of this jackasss pharmacy's mistake.
I was wondering the same thing. There are not many medications you can take that are safe as far as I know. I think I would have noticed if my prescription bottle did not have my correct name whether they were similar or not.
Here's the article that has more details. The format is wonky but I bolded pertinent parts:
FT. LUPTON, Colo. -- She is six weeks pregnant and when she went to the pharmacy to pick up an antibiotic her doctor had prescribed, the pharmacist gave her an abortion drug by mistake.Mareena Silva might lose her unborn child because of the prescription drug error, which occurred last Thursday."I took it because I thought it was mine," Silva said. Silva said the pharmacist at the Ft. Lupton Safeway gave her the prescription of methotrexate. Methotrexate is used in chemotherapy regimens to treat cancer, but it is also used to terminate early-stage pregnancies.After she took it, Silva was nauseated. "I came back and I looked at the bottle and it wasn't my name," she said.The methotrexate was intended for a 59-year-old woman with the exact same last name as Silva's and a similar first name."My doctor immediately told me to try and make myself vomit to see if I could get the medicine to come back up," Silva said.Silva was then rushed to Platte Valley Medical Center where they gave her charcoal to absorb the drug." For all this to happen now is really overwhelming," said Silva. "This is my first child, so it's really difficult to deal with."When 7NEWS asked, Safeway admitted its pharmacy mixed up prescriptions.In a statement to 7NEWS, Safeway said, "Safeway's first concern is the health of our patients. When the pharmacist became aware of what happened, he worked with the patient and with her physicians to minimize any possible health consequences to the patient and her unborn child. We have extended our sincere apologies to the customer, and offered to pay any medical expenses incurred as a result of a prescription error. We are also very concerned about how this happened and we are conducting a full and complete investigation. Safeway has pharmacy systems and processes in place to prevent this kind of occurrence. We have a well-earned reputation for reliably and safely filling prescriptions, and we will continue to work diligently to ensure our procedures and policies are being followed at each of our pharmacies." Silva isn't so convinced."Sorry's not going to cut it. I'm going to have to deal with this for a long time," Silva said. "My baby could have deformities. There's a lot that goes with it."Doctors are checking Silva's bloodwork to make sure her hormone levels are OK. She could miscarry, carry the child to full-term with severe birth defects or she could have a happy, healthy baby. 7NEWS checked and it is common practice at Walgreens and other pharmacies to ask for your address when issuing prescription medication just in case names are similar.
While I agree that she should have read the bottle before taking the pill, this is still my reaction. They'll pay for her expenses? Uh...yeah...and throw on a few more zeros for emotional pain and suffering, regardless of what happens to the baby.
How is it that my BABY is going to be 3?
BFP-2/25/11; 8 Wk U/S-3/25/11-No HB, measured 6.5 wks; D&C