Horrible doctor handwriting is a long-standing joke. For whatever reason, it seems like one of the requirements to practice medicine is to have inscrutable penmanship. But while it may seem like a strange joke, unreadable physician handwriting is no laughing matter. It can result in any of a number of possible errors, from a misfilled prescription to misunderstood directions to unreadable medical instructions on a patient chart. If a doctor’s handwriting isn’t legible, the chances for a hospital or pharmaceutical error go up, putting you at risk.

A Well-Known Error

Errors due to unreadable handwriting are more common than you might think. While some errors are easily correctable, others can have serious implications. In one well-known case, a cardiologist wrote a prescription for a man who was suffering from heart pains. Because the pharmacist couldn’t read the doctor’s handwriting, the prescription wasn’t filled as it should have been. The patient was supposed to take drugs for his chest pains once every six hours. But because the pharmacy had filled the prescription with a completely different drug. Because he wasn’t taking the right drug, the man suffered from a heart attack and died.

While the family of the man was able to sue the doctor for medical malpractice, the money didn’t bring back their deceased loved one. The case became a rallying point for reformers pushing for more responsible prescription writing.

The Digital Movement

Many across the health care industry are calling for a digital reform. They say that the tradition of handwritten prescriptions is anachronistic in today’s digital world, and that it leads to tragically preventable errors. A systemic shift is needed in order to bring patients the level of care they deserve. Some believe that illegible prescriptions are the single largest preventable cause of malpractice, as such a simple, correctable problem causes potentially catastrophic results.

The reformers suggest that it is the patient’s right to expect - and to demand - a legible prescription. They recommend that you refuse any prescription you have misgivings about, regardless of the doctor’s reaction. After all, it is your medication, and your health. Even if only 20% of patients began demanding legible prescriptions, it might cause doctors to rethink the system that is in place.

If you have any questions about medical malpractice law, or would like to learn about how to prevent doctor error, visit the Pennsylvania medical malpractice lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams today.

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