Lawsuit Filed Against Pharmacy For Dosage Overdose and Death
Simone Allen of Houston has filed a lawsuit against her longtime pharmacy Cullen Care Pharmacy, accusing them that their dosage mistake killed her six-year-old daughter.
Allen said Jadalyn was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia and prescribed morphine from time to time to regulate her pain. Jadalyn was using the liquid painkiller and was allegedly given a morphine dose that was 10 times higher than the actual prescription had called for.
Allen said the medicine was supposed to ease the pain, not killer her daughter.
According to the suit, filed in Harris County District Court, Jadalyn was given the medicine April 2, 2012 and died the next day after receiving the higher than prescribed dosage from the pharmacy. The coroner ruled the little girl’s death as “morphine toxicity”.
Muhammad Aziz, Allen’s lawyer, had initially said the matter could be settled out of court but negotiations stalled and fell apart after the insurance company for the pharmacy blamed the little girl’s death on her blood disorder and not the mistake the pharmacy made.
Aziz said there is plenty of evidence that supports the family’s claim including the coroner’s report, pharmacy records that indicate the discrepancy in dosage and tests done on the rest of the morphine bottle’s contents. He said he was shocked that the matter was going to court.
In Texas, due to its tort reform, damages are capped at $250,000. However, Aziz said, the matter isn’t about money.
Aziz said Allen’s primary goal and hope is that every pharmacy will start paying close attention to the training of employees.
Allen said she would like an apology and doesn’t understand why, when her daughter died, they didn’t call her to express their sympathies.
Cullen Care Pharmacy lawyer Michele Quattlebaum said she just got a copy of the lawsuit and would not be able to make a statement on the litigation.
Sickle cell anemia is when misshapen red blood cells cause a slowdown in oxygen delivery through the body and can be noticed with swelling in the feet and hands, frequent infections and fatigue. It can also cause period of pain known as crises.
Aziz said Allen provided her daughter with a single oral morphine solution dosage, which the pharmacy allegedly had given at 20 milligrams per 1 milliliter, not 20 milligrams per 10 milliliter.
Aziz said police initially handled the matter as a criminal case and wondered if Allen gave her daughter too much medicine. However, after a quick investigation, that was ruled out.
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