How vigilant are you when you visit the hospital?

News broke on an alleged medical negligence at the Tema General Hospital which led to the death of a ten year old boy.

According to a narration from the mother of the boy, she took her son to the Tema General Hospital after he complained of pain on his leg. According to her, her son was prescribed 50 milligrams of Naklofen but when she got to the pharmacy she was however given 75 milligrams of Naklofen. The boy later developed complications after he started taking the drugs and had to be taken back to the Tema general hospital where he was hospitalized and finally died.

This is just one incident that has been made known to the world by the mother of the boy but the truth of the matter is that several of these cases happen on daily basis.

The big question is how vigilant are you as a patient anytime you visit the hospital with regard to prescriptions from the doctor and what the pharmacist gives you? Are you the type who goes through the whole process from the OPD through the consulting room to the pharmacy without opening your folder? When was the last time you asked the doctor what your sickness was after consulting?

Have you ever taken the pain to engage your pharmacist on drugs given to you? Or you are the type who just accepts whatever is given you and starts to consume because a doctor prescribed it.

As a patient you have the right to ask the doctor or the pharmacist attending to you questions on anything you don’t understand with regard to your sickness as well the drugs prescribed to you.

Be proactive and ask the relevant questions. Your life is very precious! Don’t fall victim to what this ten year old boy experienced at the Tema General Hospital.