"Wrong" how? I had a prescription for an anti-biotic that made me nauseous. That was far worse than the bronchitis I was fighting. I refused to take it--was given a new 'script for a generic version that worked for me.

I was just discussing this the other day. Your neighborhood Pharmacy is rare in my world. People go to what ever is convenient/cheapest switch around all the time. I postulated this sort of thing would happen more and more. Are you taking benedryl? That can count allergic reactions breaks up the anti-bodies that are attacking. Definitely call the pharmacist and get his input!!

"Wrong" meaning I'm allergic to penicillin and that's what I was given unbeknownst to me. It's in both the pharmacy's and doctor's records not to give it to me. I'm out of Benadryl which I usually keep on hand.

I learned the hard way to take probiotics with antibiotics. Do you take those when you're on antibiotics?

I would really have a beef with the pharmacy. Well the dentist also but the pharmacy even more so. Benedryl can help, but it's often not enough. Are you still itching or having any other symptoms? Last spring I had an allergic reaction to Augmentin (for a sinus infection) which I had taken many times previously. I was even on it several weeks before and after my sinus surgery a few years back. Never a problem. I also had itching, but even scarier was how my lips and the lower part of my face swelled up. I was put on benedryl and steriods. My lips looked like they had turned inside out!

I would definitely voice my displeasure with the pharmacy. I'm allergic to another antibiotic and all sulfa drugs. When filling out info forms, etc. I always put "allergic to sulfa drugs and all derivatives".

I'm a health professional; may I ask what the drug was that caused your reaction?

Oakley, my mom had trouble with sore spots in her mouth that medication wouldn't heal, and her dentist told her to stop using toothpaste. The sores cleared up quickly, so it was something in the toothpaste that was causing them. He told her to use baking soda instead.

Donna

Tina and Jb, it was Augmentin. I still have some itching but not as much. The pharmacy apologized profusely and wondered why the allergy wasn't tagged this time when it usually is.

When I came down with my first allergic reaction my tongue swelled and mouth started itching. Thankfully I had Benadryl on hand, and thankfully I didn't have that reaction last night.

The first time I took a sulfa drug it did a number on my taste buds. Now I can't eat anything spicy, which includes pepper.

I take a good probiotic now which helps with those weird side effects.

Tina, did you ever have food allergies? I read that people with food allergies are prone to allergic reactions to some meds. I had them really bad until I was about 40, then they went away. And then I became allergic to penicillin. lol

I'm surprised the allergy isn't noted on your records at the pharmacy. My mom requires a certain type of bottle and even that is recorded. Although, she can't have blood thinners, and I'm not sure if that's on the pharmacy record. Is on all her medical records and on her list of meds she always carries to the doctor and hospital. In fact, it's also hand-written in marker with a red circle around it. And yet, every time she goes to the ER, they try to give her a blood thinner. We've learned to ask every time they want to give her something, we ask "what is that? Does it contain a blood thinner?" And way too often it does. Then they look at us like WE are idiots and just shrug.

Bpath, it is marked/flagged on my records. Which is why I did this topic. Somehow the pharmacy didn't catch it yesterday. Not sure why unless a tech was talking and and filling my med at the same time.

Nope, no food allergies. I wonder if now I can't take anything in the penicillin family? I have never had penicillin (to the best of my knowledge). I took Augmentin many times before the reaction. My doc said that often happens though.

Yes, I had an infection and my dr. called in an rx. and my husband picked it up, he then brought it home, opened it and gave me one. I took three a day for two days and then I passed out. I was taken to the hospital with low bp and totally dehydrated. I gave them the rx and the dr. immediately said "this is a strong diuretic" no wonder you are in this state. I was admitted as I have had a lifetime of chronic kidney disease and the last thing I needed was a diuretic. I have CKD and glomerulonephritis. I rebounded and eventually went back to the drugstore. He apologized and was shaking with fear. I reassured him that I just wanted him to be more careful in the future.

I have never had any trouble from a pharmacy mistake but I always Google the med and dosage before i take something or give something to my kids. I unabashedly Google everything :)

msmeow, I wonder if the stuff causing your mom problems is sodium laurel sulfate (SLS). It's in most toothpaste and my dentist said it's what makes it all foamy and lovely. For some time, especially in the afternoons and evenings, I had this weird white stuff in my mouth, like some foodstuff working its way out. One day the dentist noted some peeling of the lining of my mouth. Suddenly I realized what the white stuff was and it totally grossed me out. She told me to try a toothpaste without SLS--but *with* fluoride. It stopped the sloughing immediately. If I use a toothpaste with SLS it returns that day. It never became sore or infected.

Augmentin is Amoxicillin with Clavulanic acid. Amoxicillin is a "cousin" to Penicillin. I would never prescribe it for someone with a known allergy to Penicillin. The ball was dropped twice, in your case. Sorry that you've had to go through this; hope you are doing better.

I do the same as d-gw, and check if I've been given something I'm not familiar with, not familiar with the appearance of the tablet or capsule. DH has a penicillin allergy, or at least we think he does - he had a rash when given penicillin as a child and has never taken it again. I feel fairly confident in our prescriptions though as we've gone to the same small drugstore, same pharmacist for anything we've needed all our adult lives. The pharmacist has sold the business recently, retiring, and is only there himself a day or two a week, but we're getting to know the new owner - we've never filled prescriptions at the larger chains, while their prices may be slightly better, the lines and wait times are much longer ;0) Parking lots less friendly.

A friend of mine is our public health nurse, and she did give me a heads up on the pharmacy in one of our larger local chain stores that has housewares, toys, electronics, groceries, a pharmacy. She said the number of reported mistakes coming from that pharmacy were higher than 'average', she didn't recommend using it for meds. There is an occasional plus to living in a smaller community.

That is scary Oakley. Hope you are feeling better soon. I've had several mistakes happen. With one, for a child's minor ailment, the filled prescription came back with the pharmacy label showing the proper prescribed product, but the existing bottle label partially hidden underneath identified the pills as a heavy duty diabetes medicine, I believe (it was a long time ago, I'd have to check the bottle).

How scary! We had a big story in the news recently where two pharmacists were censured after drug errors led to patient deaths. In one case the pharmacist just didn't dispense a medication, telling the patient it wasn't under their plan --and the patient passed away from complications from not having the drug. In another the pharmacy gave the woman five times the amount she needed of immunosuppressants.

There was a man in my same neighborhood with my same name, same doctor, and we used the same pharmacy. There was a mistake almost every time I went to the doctor.

I hope you feel better soon, Oakley, both from the original infection and the medicine!

I picked up a scrip for my husband once and it was the wrong dosage (correct med, wrong pill size). Of course, its not returnable and we were out a $60 copay (thankfully he could cut them in half). So now when I pick up anything, I make sure what it is supposed to be, and open the package right there to confirm. Once you walk away from the register, they won't take it back.

Maybe you should get an epipen, I don't know if penicillin allergy can go anaphylactic.

Linelle, I'm glad you found out about the SLS reaction! I don't know if they determined what caused mom's reaction.

Donna

I an allergic to Tylenol. It makes me vomit. I always make sure that all my allergies are on file whenever I have medical treatment (they never leave enough space on the form for all my allergies). When I had surgery on my throat, I was given some narcotic for pain when I was in the recovery room. And I started to retch, which is just what you don't want to happen with throat surgery. It turns out that the narcotic contains Tylenol. So now I've added that to my list of medications I'm allergic to. Yes, I was extremely angry about that mistake. It set back my healing.

I can't take aspirin because I immediately can not breathe which happened in high school. I have also been a lifelong very serious asthmatic.

When I was being prepped for my c-section the nurses game me a shot of something, and I immediately broke into hives. I remember my OB (who was extremely handsome) told the nurse to put it in my file). I hope they did because I was so out of it I can't remember what it was called.

Horror stories! We can never assume we have the right meds, huh? When I looked at the bottle I knew it was an antibiotic because I recognized the name, but it never occurred to me it was a penicillin until I read it last night online.

It was just last year when I stopped by the pharmacy to pick up my refills after I called them in, and when I got home I had someone else's medicine!

I still haven't heard back from the dentist. I left the message with his receptionist this morning and also told the pharmacy to call me when they get the new script. I guess almost killing someone isn't a big deal. ;)

That is frightening, and if I were you I would let the pharmacist and dentist know what happened. Both of them dropped the ball. My dad is allergic to penicillin and sulfa drugs, and almost died once as a result of his penicillin allergy.

After I had my second baby, they tried to give me a pill and I questioned what it was for as I never was given any medication after the first one was born. The nurse told me it was to dry up my milk. I then told her I was breastfeeding, which was in my chart. After our third baby was born, they brought the wrong baby to me to nurse (different hospital). I noticed immediately before they even looked at our bracelets and told them it wasn't my baby. In reflecting on those experiences, it made me wonder what would have happened if I hadn't been alert or what if I had had a csection and been on pain meds, etc. I now question and double check everything. Before my ankle surgery, I drew on the correct leg with Sharpie!

suero-Tylenol is in many, many medications. Your experience sounds horrible.

I learned an expression when dealing with an airline and my mother with her broken foot. An employee at one location advised me "you can't overcommunicate your need for a wheelchair. Tell every employee you see."

This is another time that expression works. You (meaning all of us) can't overcommunicate our medical needs. Remind the doctor/dentist and the pharmacist EVERY time of any allergies or special needs. Mistakes do happen, it's human nature, so it's best to be proactive instead of reactive. I pity the person too sick to speak and those without an advocate.

My husband's grandmother was given the wrong medication while in the hospital ICU. It didn't kill or maim her, but they did offer a please-don't-sue-us settlement (I imagine they have another name for it). She divided the amount among her children and grandkids, so all of them received a small amount of cash before she died.

A lot of serious and scary experiences have been recounted here, and thank goodness that the outcomes were not worse. DD1 and DD3 have allergies, as do I. I haven't taken "known" wrong medicines, but have had a couple of near misses. I am allergic to common topical pain killers, antibiotics and latex. In advance of a day-surgery, I met with a hospital anaesthesiologist so that alternative drugs would be used. I arrived as the first surgery of the day, luckily armed with documents about acceptable vs non-acceptable drugs -- there was no record of my requirements and if I had not asked the question on the day, the drugs I am allergic to would have been used. When DD2 was a toddler, she was weighed in preparation for surgery. I was with her and asked about her weight, and it turned out that the nurse had misread by double!

Luckily, so far, my pharmacy, doctors and dentist have been reliably vigilant. In one case I was prescribed a vaccine by a specialist, and the pharmacy turned it down until the specialist provided a written letter that the amount of the allergen in the vaccine was low enough that the benefits outweighed the risks. My dentist sent me to a second allergist to verify which drugs could be safely used during dental procedures - I am allergic to the most commonly used anaesthetic, xylocaine.

I agree that communicating, reminding, double-checking is important because even good systems can become slack or fail. As an allergic individual, what I find especially scary though is the thought of being treated in some sort of medical emergency with substances or materials which I don't know may cause a serious reaction. A few years ago we were in the UK and I woke with huge hives on my entire body and swollen limbs. A doctor there told me that a systemic drug I was on had been "banned" in the UK and I was having a serious reaction to it. It took several days of antihistamine treatment for the symptoms to go away:(

Donna, I didn't know that about toothpaste. Interesting. I'll read further about it later. It's a big infection/swelling. My gut is telling me it's some sort of gum disease, but gee, it happens overnight with teeth in good condition?

The dentist called in my new script which I'll get in the morning, but he didn't call me which IMO, is rude considering we've known each other forever because our children went to school together in this small town.

I'm wondering if being allergic to penicillin has to do with all the cattle, etc., being given penicillin? I read that if we get too much in our food source we could become allergic to it. I need to read more.

DH had a horrible reaction to a prescription. That's when he learned about the FDA's Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting System. FDA takes this very seriously. http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/Surveillance/AdverseDrugEffects/

Someone mentioned above the need to take probiotics with antibiotics. I too learned this the hard way. Routine antibiotics given for a minor dental surgery caused c- diff, an antibiotic resistant superbug, and I almost died. Horrible. I now refuse antibiotics for anything minor and make sure I specify the relatively safe antibiotics if absolutely needed, for a surgery for example. I urge everyone to read up on this matter and be very aware of the risks. Above all don't take unnecessary antibiotics.

I fractured my spine and the ER gave me a scrip for 800 mg Ibuprofen. I was confined to a chair-couldn't move due to fractures-and my DH was stuck at the hospital with his mother who was dying. I took my pills as directed but then started feeling very queasy. Within 3 days I was vomiting blood and was taken back to the ER where the same doctor diagnosed with a hole in my stomach from the Ibuprofen.

I have to take antibiotics frequently because I have lowered immunity and a propensity to infection so I have a great fear of antibiotic resistant infections. I take probitotics every day since the second I take one antibiotic, I get reactions. Fortunately I'm not allergic to any antibiotics.

Emory-My mother got c-Diff in the hospital after breaking her hip. She was 80, and I thought she was going to die too. It took her months to recover. She was down to 85 pounds. Her doctor had her start drinking kefir, and she still drinks it every day. A friend's daughter has had it several times (she has UC), finally a fecal transplant cured it. I had never even heard of it until my mom got it. Unbelievably horrible.

Texanjana, the same thing happened to my mom. She was 86 I think. She also got MRSA. She finally recovered and lived 4 more years on her own!

Donna

Oakley, sorry you're going thru this. As bad as it is, it could have been a lot worse :(

Yes, I've been given the wrong medication but even worse, the wrong medication was given to my daughter when she was just a child. But, being the proactive type, I always check meds before taking them. Before the Internet and Google, I used a PDR to reference drugs. It was the same pharmacist both times. I tore into him when he gave my daughter the wrong medication and complained to the store management. This guy seemed to be on too many drugs himself! Found out later there were many complaints against him and soon after he was fired.

Being in the hospital is so darn dangerous anymore (well has been for many many years). Superbugs, overworked staff, staff on drugs, under educated staff...you can't leave a loved one in the hospital by themselves. Someone needs to be their advocate. DH has been in the hospital exactly 2x. The first was for a crushed heel. The care (or lack of) and staff was so atrocious I spent most of my time in the administrator's office :o I later filed a complaint with the state board of health and after reviewing my complaints and finding them valid, they zeroed out his bill. The 2nd time was for a double bypass. EXCELLENT care this time around in a much better hospital (Louis and Peaches Heart Hospital in Tyler, TX). Everyone from the janitorial crew to the surgeon and his cutting edge bypass procedure and the sharp as a tack nurturing and caring nurses. You would have thought he was their only patient.

I've been taking pro-biotics daily for a few years. There is no doubt in my mind they prevent all kinds of illnesses. A happy gut full of good bacteria is a good thing :)

I have a friend that got C-diff in the hospital. Hers became so bad she needed the bowel transplant. My mother also contracted it in the hospital, I think during an oblation for A-fib. She didn't have the bowel transplant but it took her months to get over it.

I had to look up C-diff and now I'm scared. lol. I have a "common" side effect from Augmentin that began during the night. I didn't have this with the other antibiotic, so I hope it will go away soon.

Now I understand why years ago DH wanted to take me home the night after gall bladder removal. I said no way, I want to stay and be pampered. :)

Monica, I also take a daily probiotic. My grandfather contracted c-diff in the hospital once. Luckily, they caught it very quickly and he responded well to treatment. One thing to remember is that it is contagious. Some people really have a hard time with it. If I remember correctly, it can remain dormant in your system and flare back up.

That's right, Tina. You have to use a high percentage of a bleach solution to kill it, can't remember what off the top of my head. My mom actually had three bouts with it back to back.

Like my friend says, it will be the superbugs that get us in the end.

You can't "overcommunicate" is a really good thing to keep in mind. Yes, the Dr. should have known. Yes, the pharmacy should have caught it. I would be very upset with both professionals. But especially when it comes to health, assigning blame is not so satisfying in the end; avoiding the problem is far more important.

With c-diff I dropped 30 lbs in 5 months and was near-skeletal. I finally had a fecal transplant (thank God for this option) and was cured completely in one day. I was only 54, completely healthy and fit, but did what so many do: mindlessly took the clindomyacin (I may have spelled that wrong) that dentists routinely prescribe for dental procedures. It is one of the leading causes of c-diff because it clears out all the good bacteria in the gut. Until I got it, I knew nothing whatsoever about gut bacteria. Now I'm a veritable expert and it is very exciting to see all the recent research on it. Since the transplant (which takes all of 20 minutes via a colonoscopy; now they even are experimenting with a pill) I gained all the weight back and am perfectly healthy again. It is truly a miracle cure. However, no one has any idea how much (or if) people who have had c-diff are susceptible again. That research has yet to come.

I am sorry you had to go through this, Oakley. If I were in your shoes, I would start memorizing or keep a list handy of all the penicillin derivatives as there are many.

We have never received the wrong medications but the number of times a prescription has been messed up is mind boggling. I think one of the problems is the electronic submission of the RX and the filling party not stopping to think about things. My daughter has chronic medications that we fill through an online pharmacy. It seems every year, there is something wrong with at least one RX when it is filled. If the RX was forwarded to me at the same time it went to the pharmacy, I could look it over to make sure everything is as it should be. The most recent egregious one involved her syringes. The directions are to use 1 seven times a day. The prescription should have covered 43 days and there were only 30 syringes sent (which covers 4 days). Obviously, there was a screw up somewhere and the math is soo far off that the doctor or I should have received a phone call to clarify. The company feels their responsibility is to only fill prescriptions as written, not to provide a check and balance. If they fill it as written, then I am still financially responsible for that lesser amount and for the new prescription that I need filled correctly. It is madness.

Tina & Emory, will probiotics prevent someone from getting c-diff? Emory, are you on them now?

Tish, I don't think I mentioned this above, but last year when I came home from the pharmacy I had someone else's medication. That was a first in all the years I've been going there.

No one knows whether probiotics will prevent someone from getting c-diff. My doctor at the University of Minnesota is one of the leading researchers in the area and they are actively working on this issue. However, it is generally advised that if you do need to go on antibiotics (and again people should be cautious doing so), not only question what antibiotic it is but also use probiotics along side the treatment.There are some antibiotics much more conducive to c-diff than others. I am several years past the illness and I do take a probiotic about every two-three days just as a possible precaution. But the jury is still out on these. I drink homemade kefir too, mainly because I love the stuff.