Recently, Walgreens pharmacists across the Chicago area have been on strike, leading up to a “Phed Up” event in May at the company’s headquarters.

Pharmacists have been working without a contract for nearly a year.

Why are they striking and how does this affect your health?

Worker Rights for Pharmacists Can Affect Your Health—How?

I can tell you anecdotally that I have handled about a half dozen cases involving this particular pharmacy in which the patient received the WRONG MEDICATION.  Because so many pills look the same, patients often didn’t know they were taking the wrong medication until they felt the effects.

One case I handled involved a woman with severe pain receiving antipsychotic medication instead of pain medication, so she was not only in severe pain, she experienced an actual mental health crisis and developed psychotic symptoms.

Another involved medication in the wrong dose, which caused the patient to become disoriented, nauseous, and unable to function.

In all cases, within several days to weeks the mistakes were discovered, remedied, and no permanent harm was done.  I was able to recover settlements to compensate all of my clients who experienced medication mix-ups. 

How does this happen?

Exactly the way the pharmacists are stating: they are understaffed, overworked, and unable to take the time and care they need to do the job properly.

That is why they are on strike.

Worker Rights, Patient Rights, Your Rights

It’s not unreasonable for a company to expect its employees to work diligently. But if workers are pressed to perform up to a certain level of productivity—say, fill x number of prescriptions per shift—it can actually make clients sick, or worse.

Everyone who works has, at one time or another, felt the squeeze of a deadline, a demanding/unreasonable boss, or the feeling of “not enough hours in the day” to get their job done.

Pharmacists are no different.  Unlike many other workers, however, their mistakes can actually be fatal to others. Rarely, and usually not.  But the risk is there.

Simply put, the pharmacists striking are asking for better working conditions, as well as better pay.  They need time to do their jobs properly and safely. 

For everyone’s safety, I sure hope management and the pharmacists arrive at a reasonable resolution.  That can only help patients, too.

Takeaways

  • Pharmacists at Walgreens in the Chicago area are on strike
  • Medication prescription mix-ups can cause serious medical problems, or worse
  • Pharmacists need more time to do their jobs properly and safely

Contact Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer Stephen Hoffman

As in all cases involving injury, dog bites or injuries, workers’ compensation, medical malpractice, or other injury and potential liability, if you have suffered a medication mix-up, get medical treatment, report the crash to police and your own insurance company, and contact a lawyer with expertise in your type of case.

If you’ve been injured and have questions, contact Chicago personal injury attorney Stephen L. Hoffman for a free consultation at (773) 944-9737. Stephen has over 30 years of legal experience and has collected millions of dollars for his clients. He is listed as a SuperLawyer, has a 10.0 rating on Avvo, and is BBB A+ accredited. He is also an Executive Level Member of the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce.

Stephen handles personal injury claims on a contingency fee basis, which means you don’t pay anything up front, and he only gets paid if you do. Don’t wait another day; contact Stephen now.