One shingles vaccination is called Zostavax. Patients 50 years and older are often the target audience for the medication. Various health issues and adverse effects of the Zostavax vaccine have recently come to light.
Some negative effects of Zostavax include:
- Rash
- Headache
- Hives
- Fever/Nausea
- Muscle and joint pain
- Eye conditions
To assist the patient in developing immunity to the virus, Zostavax administers a weakened version of the shingles virus. However, in a few instances, patients instead experienced shingles virus outbreaks. Since the mechanism for shingles is connected to the chickenpox virus, some people have also suffered outbreaks of that disease.
Other, more severe adverse effects have included blindness, paralysis, brain damage, and illnesses associated with life-threatening liver failure. Patients who are immunocompromised (have underlying immune system disorders) may be particularly vulnerable to side effect concerns.
Who Is Responsible for Zostavax-Related Damages?
A product liability theory of law may allow producers of the Zostavax vaccination to be held accountable in particular situations for damage. For instance, the manufacturer may be responsible for injuries brought on by product flaws if the vaccine they produced had materials of poor quality. Vaccination manufacturers can also be in legal trouble regarding false testing and clinical result manipulation.
In other situations, a doctor or pharmacist may be held accountable for a prescription or pharmacy error. One instance is when a doctor gives the incorrect patient a prescription for the Zostavax vaccine. Another instance is when a medical professional neglects to take the patient’s medical history into account, particularly if the patient has a history of immunocompromised or has a medical record of it.
Do Legal Recourses Exist for a Zostavax Injury Claim?
Injury claims from Zostavax can frequently be complicated, and litigation may be necessary to resolve any disagreements completely. The standard legal remedy in these types of disputes is a monetary damages award given to the plaintiff. These losses could be compensation for pain and suffering, missed pay while recovering from an injury or illness, and medical and hospital costs. Additional damages might also be awarded in situations where wrongful death is a concern.
If the same cause has harmed numerous persons in connection with Zostavax products, it may be appropriate in some circumstances to file a class action lawsuit.
Can a Doctor be Held Accountable for Harm Caused by Prescription Drug Side Effects?
A doctor is responsible for using reasonable care and skill to determine whether the patient may be hypersensitive to a specific drug and reduce the likelihood of a negative drug reaction. A doctor could be charged with malpractice for any duty violation that results in patient harm.
Duty to Patients
According to some courts, the obligation requires a doctor to examine the patient or test them for medication hypersensitivity. For instance, a doctor was held accountable for neglecting to order blood tests or make any other effort to ascertain the patient’s propensity for developing aplastic anemia due to chloromycetin.
Duty to Warn
A doctor may also have a responsibility to mention potential negative effects. Prednisone, a steroid that increases the risk of aseptic necrosis, was used to treat an asthma patient in one instance. The court determined that it would be incorrect to infer that a reasonable person in the patient’s position would agree to treatment with Prednisone because the patient had progressed with more conservative medications and because taking Prednisone exposed them to a significant risk of aseptic necrosis.
Duty to Gather Knowledge
Finally, a doctor must take note of any information provided by the patient or found in the patient’s records that points to medication hypersensitivity. For instance, a doctor proceeded to provide tryparsamide injections despite a patient’s complaints of eye discomfort, which did not manifest until after therapy. Given the data demonstrating that blindness was acknowledged as a potential side effect of tryparsamide injections, this therapy was negligent.
Can a Doctor be Held Accountable for Third-Party Injuries?
Some courts maintain that a duty of care is owed to third parties when a doctor provides medication to a patient who later causes harm to a third party due to a side effect of the medication taken, and the harm was predictable.
For instance, a doctor who administered an injection for a severe migraine headache and then permitted the patient to drive was found responsible for a third party who was hurt in a car collision with the patient.
According to the court, a doctor is responsible to any third parties to whom the patient may reasonably harm. The court observed a considerable probability of a car accident occurring right after the injection of potent medicine.
What is the Standard of Care for Pharmacists?
The crucial task of giving medication to patients, who are critically ill, falls to a pharmacist. Pharmacy malpractice regulations may apply if a pharmacist administers the incorrect drug or the incorrect dosage of a prescription.
According to research, up to 10% of prescriptions are filled incorrectly. Even though it can seem unfair to excuse a pharmacist for a mistake, tiny errors that only cause little problems might be justifiably excused.
The pharmacist can only be held accountable for malpractice if they actually do anything wrong and it results in harm. For instance, a pharmacist committed malpractice when an infant received five times the recommended amount of antibiotics.
Another instance included a toddler who had early puberty after receiving the incorrect steroid, which was intended for adults.
A pharmacist has received training in dispensing medicine. A typical person wouldn’t be knowledgeable enough to achieve this.
As a result, people have a lot of faith that pharmacists will mix and distribute prescriptions correctly. The pharmacist’s responsibility is also to prepare pharmaceuticals by technicians, who may be unskilled and low-paid workers.
As specialists, pharmacists are expected to conduct themselves in a way that would be reasonable for someone with their level of education and expertise. Regarding a patient’s prescription use, drug interactions, and refills, they must use discretion.
What Are a Few Cases of Pharmacist Misconduct?
Pharmacy malpractice can occur in several different circumstances, such as giving the patient the incorrect dosage or the incorrect medication altogether, overlooking a possible drug interaction, failing to use good judgment when determining the dosage or duration, and failing to inform the patient of potential side effects and drug interactions.
A pharmacist may inadvertently deliver the incorrect dosage or type of medication. There are numerous drugs with names that sound similar but could be used for very distinct purposes. Additionally, many prescriptions come in various doses, and the pharmacist could unintentionally provide the wrong one.
Mislabeling is another issue that could happen. In some instances, the right drug may be prescribed with the wrong instructions.
This could result in the patient unintentionally using the medicine in a harmful way. Common instances include:
- Taking the drug too frequently;
- Not regularly enough;
- Insufficiently;
- In excess;
- Not at all;
- Not providing a list of what not to take with the medication; and
- Failing to disclose potential adverse effects.
Additionally, a pharmacist could neglect to inform the patient about any prescriptions that should not be used together or with one another. For instance, medications for high blood pressure should not be combined with angiotensin-related drugs.
This might happen if a patient visits two doctors, each for a separate disease, and neither of the doctors is aware of the medication the patient is taking. The pharmacist should know these contraindications and should alert the patient or call their doctor.
A person can file a case by contacting a local personal injury lawyer. The patient should keep track of their prescriptions and any accompanying papers.
Should I Get Legal Aid for My Zostavax Lawsuit?
A lawyer may be needed for representation in complex Zostavax litigation. If you require assistance with a case, it can be in your best interests to employ a defective products attorney in your region. Your lawyer can represent you in court and give you legal counsel regarding your claim.
