The Great Cost Of Medication Errors

Dorothy Freudeman was a resident at The Landing of Canton, an assisted living facility. She was discovered in an unresponsive state in her room and spent fifteen months in a semicomatose state before dying. Her son, Dennis Freudeman, sued The Landing for negligence, violating Ohio Patient Bill of Rights, wrongful death, and punitive damages. He alleged that staff at The Landing mistakenly gave Dorothy anti-diabetic medication, which caused hypoglycemia and resulted in permanent brain dysfunction. Because he could not prove exactly how Dorothy received the medication, he requested a jury instruction on res ipsa loquitur, which the district court gave over The Landing’s objection. The jury found The Landing liable on all claims and awarded $680,000 in compensatory damages and $1,250,000 in punitive damages, plus attorney fees.

The court referred to multiple prior medication errors and that the facility had “regularly engaged in the unsafe practice of pre-pouring residents' medications; the medication cart was ‘a mess' most of the time” among other violations. This one court case highlights the ramifications of medication administration errors and not following best practices of medication administration.

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