Doctor’s handwriting has always been the source of jokes because in many cases it is so cryptic. But in a recent report presented at the Diabetes UK’s Annual Professional Conference in Liverpool this week, it was suggested that bad handwriting is no laughing matter. Doctor’s bad handwriting is responsible for prescription errors.

The UK Diabetes research indicates that in one out of 20 cases, instructions about medication could easily be misread because of poor handwriting. The study used the hospital charts of 75 diabetes patients. In just these 75 patients alone, the report showed that there was one error in every six prescriptions, and that the timings for insulin injections were wrong in one out of every three charts!

There are serious ramifications of incorrectly following insulin injection guidelines and since one in ten hospital patients has diabetes, these are commonly prescribed. The high percentage of insulin errors resulting from poorly written instructions can have serious consequences, sometimes even fatal consequences.

The report stated that “A misunderstanding from an abbreviation for insulin units could have serious if not fatal consequences. For example, a doctor should prescribe insulin as “10 units” at a specified time, if written as “10 I U” or “10 I units”, this could be easily misread as 101 units.”

By providing training to doctors and nurses, the report also showed a significant decrease in prescription errors.

If you or a loved one has suffered as result of incorrectly prescribed medication, you may need the help of a Lawyer for Medical Malpractice.

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