The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1886-05-01
MISTAKES IN MEDICINE.
Careless Physicians Who Make Grave Err
rors In Their Prescriptions.

WHO ANcS iN mCOiStNSs
Careless Physicians who Make Grave Err
rors In Their Prescriptions.
s'That was a hard run of it, re-
marked downtown clerk to re-
porter for the San, who dropped in a
drug store late the other night. people
talk about mistakes of pharmacists, but
not one mistake is made in drug store
to twenty by doctors who write prescrip-
tons. / have just had case which
might have caused death if l had not
discovered an error by physician in
time to prevent it. Two hours ago a
man came in here with a prescription.
He was in a hurry for it, because the
person for whom it was intended was
suffering greatly, and something had
to be done. The physician who attend
ed the case wrote out q prescription.
The medicines he intended to give
were to relieve the suffering, but in
compromising the prescription found
that he had included enough of a power
full drug to have killed twenty persons
in the doses he intended to give. 1t
was not case where could make an
alteration, as druggists frequently have
to do. 1 could not make up the pre-
scription, because knew it would
cause death. The only thing to be done
was to hunt up the doctor. l had to
hunt him up myself, because he would
have been very angry If had sent the
man after him. and we would have lost
his custom. took cab and drove to
his house. There l found he had
moved away, and I had to go a mile
farther before found him. 1t was an
hour and half before l got back and
filed the prescription.
"Do such things frequently occurp'
"They happen every day. In most
cases they are detected by the druggist
before harm results. A pharmacist
must know the nature of drug, for
what purpose it is used and the amount
given in ordinary doses. This is espe-
cialiy true of poisons or potent RENE
dies. By this means if errors are made
we can detect them. The mere acct
dental addition of small angle to the
sign used for dram will make it an
ounce and multiplies the quantity
eighty times. That little mark is easily
made and it frequently is. Justyester.
day prescription came to me from a
physician who wanted to give patient
medicine so potent that three drops
would have killed him. In order tc
prevent overdoses the medicine was to
be mixed with four ounces of some
harmless liquid. which is known to the
trade as the 'vehicle;' that is. the harm.
less drug used to dilute the potent
remedy. In this prescription the ply.
stefan had simply reversed the two
drugs, giving four ounces Of the poison
Gus medicine and few drops of the
vehicle OF course that was mistake
on its face, and l simply reversed the
quantities"
ssDo these errors arise from the care
lessness of the physician"
II can't say it is carelessness, but
something is wrong. l can see thai
some errors arise from the fact thai
members of family talk to physiciat
when he is writing the prescription
and he inadvertently writes the wrong
medicine. II, however, physicians
would carefully read their prescriptions
before sending them outthere would be
| less trouble, but more than half the
doctors write out the prescription, teal
it off the tab and give it to the patient
or his friends without looking at il
again. If physicians would read then
| prescriptions some very common errors
would be avoided. For example, it no,
infrequently happens that morphine j.
written for quinine. Physicians in good
standing In Chicago have written or
prescriptions calling for six-grain NOR
phine capsules. Now anybody would
| know that was not the thing thai
was wanted. Such prescriptions
would never get into drug
store if the doctors were only more
careful in their work, or if they would
read their prescriptions before sending
them out. But the greatest trouble il
in illegible writing. Doctors as a ruiz
| are careless writers. Their prescrip
tons are difficult to read. Many tint
have been compelled to go to doc
tors Office and get him to decipher ;
prescription, and every druggist ha.
had the same experience. Now, if there
is anything that should be written il
clear, bold hand it is q prescription
Think how much depends upon its cor
rect composition by the druggist. 1
he should make mistake no excus,
would be made for him. Scores of doc
tors never think of this. They writ,
prescriptions in bad penmanship ant
the druggist has to trust to luck
1t seems to me that good penmanshiI
should be made one OF the requisites o
physicians right to practice. Medi
cal colleges should have penmanshil
department and require its students t
take full course before graduating
In that way many mistakes Of physi
clans now attributed to druggists nigh
be avoided. ~ Chicago Sun.