drugs
Drug Errors
Prescribing drugs
Doctors sometimes make errors when prescribing drugs, especially among certain groups of people. Older people, pregnant women, and children are particularly at risk because they typically require different drugs, different doses, or both. Other errors involve Drug Interactions , in which one drug increases or decreases the effect of another drug. Drug interactions are more likely to occur in people who take many drugs. To minimize this risk, doctors need to know all drugs their patients are taking—including those prescribed by other health care practitioners and over-the-counter drugs. People should keep a written list of all their current drugs and dosages and bring the list to every health care appointment or emergency department visit. If there is any doubt as to which drugs are being used, people are instructed to bring all their drugs to their health care appointments for review. 