Pregnant woman mistakenly given abortion drug

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  FORT LUPTON, Colo. (AP) - A pregnant Colorado woman mistakenly given an abortion drug by a pharmacist faces an excruciating wait to find out the fate of her unborn child.

A pharmacist at a Safeway supermarket in Fort Lupton gave Mareena Silva the drug methotrexate last week. The drug, intended for another woman, is used in chemotherapy and to terminate early-stage pregnancies.

Silva, who is six weeks pregnant, told KMGH-TV in Denver that she took a pill and checked the bottle after becoming sick. She was rushed to the hospital.

Doctors say Silva could miscarry or have a baby with birth defects.

"For all this to happen now, it's really overwhelming to know that I have to come home and sit and wait," Silva said in an interview with the station.

Safeway issued a statement that said policies and procedures meant to prevent medication errors were not adhered to, and that the company is redoubling efforts to ensure they are followed. Those procedures include asking twice for the patient's full name and date of birth before handing out medication.

"We have extended our sincere apologies to Ms. Silva and offered to pay any medical expenses incurred as a result of the prescription error," Safeway's statement said. "We understand the anxiety this has caused and the difficulty of Ms. Silva's situation."

Silva told KMGH that the apology didn't change anything.

"Sorry is not going to cut it. I'm going to have to deal with this a long time," she said.

A woman who answered the door at Silva's apartment Tuesday said she had moved out and wouldn't talk to the media anymore based on the advice of an attorney. A message left with the woman for Silva was not immediately returned.

Fort Lupton is a small agricultural community on the eastern plains of Colorado, about 35 miles north of Denver.
Source

 
Oh wow... I'd prolly be mental if that happened to me. I'm so sad for her. Hopefully the baby doesn't suffer as a result.

 
Poor woman. How would you deal with something like that? They would want to be offering more then just medical expenses in the end. I would sue them broke.

 
Oh I know. My heart aches for what she is going through. Can you imagine if she has been trying for years?

 
Some more info on this (I was curious as to some follow ups, but I haven't really found much yet)

She (Mareena Silva) was given a pill that was meant for Maria Silva.  She thought she was receiving an anti-biotic.

She is 19 years old (so luckily the chances of her having tried for years isn't bad, but the chances that this was supposed to be her first child is probably high -- how traumatic for your first baby.  Since she's only 6 weeks pregnant, she probably only found out about her pregnancy in the last month, too)

At this point, I don't know if it would be better for her to have a baby with birth defects and have Safeway to blame for the rest of its life, or if the baby gets accidentally terminated...but either way I don't know how Safeway expects to put a monetary value on someone's standard of life (either by not surviving the ordeal or going from a normal baby to a birth defect ridden baby.  The pill is meant to stop the growth of living cells which can obviously wreak havoc when you're trying to grow a baby.)

quotes:

Doctors say the drug taken during the crucial six to eight weeks of pregnancy could affect the development of the heart, the brain, the limbs and cranial facial features. 

"There are no randomized studies where we would actually submit a pregnant mom to this medication but these are reports of women who have been inadvertently exposed to medicines and then we collect the data based on studies," Scott said.

 
I'm quite surprised that this could happen.

In my pharmacy, the pharmacist always ask me my name, and explains the nature of the medication - when I get medication filled.

I assumed this was the standard practice in all pharmacys.

I am very sad for the woman - I hope that things turn out ok for her, and the baby.

I was not aware that medication could be given to terminate early stage pregnancies.

I hope that this medication replaces all D & C abortions, and truly leaves the decision to terminate between the mother and her physician.

 
I dont want to be flamed for this by why didnt she look at the bottle? I dont trust anyone at all. I dont care what kind of degrees you have I always check my pill bottle and pills. It is still a very horrible thing that happened to her.

 
It's hard to check if you don't know what you are checking for.  In my wildest dreams would I be thinking that the pill I was given is to abort the baby. I would sue them blind.  This would also be a dilemma if the baby was discovered to have birth defects while in utero.  What would you do then?

I was also wondering why I did not hear in the news the announcement from Britain that linked Ibuprophens (Advil) will early pregnancy miscarriages. 

 
I have had very mixed experiences with Safeway pharmacies.  If there was a mistake made I doubt that pharmacist themselves made the mistake, but the pharmacist aids that are so prevalent at these stores.   I know at mine some of the pharmacist aids are truly inept and I could easily see them giving the wrong medication to someone.  

and no Carolyn I have never once had anyone at the pharmacy say anything to me about what I was picking up.   I think that goes to the difference between dealing with your friendly local neighborhood pharmacy that knows you and the big chain pharmacy (whether in a supermarket or not).

and not to absolve the pharmacy from their mistake which is absolutely horrible and inexcusable,  but where is this woman's head at?   I agree totally with Emily,   why wouldn't you read the bottle,  first see that the drug name seems strange and not what you had expected   and secondly notice that the name on the bottle isn't yours? Call someone.  the pharmacist,  your OB etc??      This is beyond belief,  especially if you are pregnant that you wouldn't double check everything.  She is equally to blame.

 
I don't know why she didn't double check either. Sometimes I forget. I think she should have, but I wouldn't place equal blame with the woman (some though). I go to Rite Aid, and they always ask my name and talk to me about my prescriptions.

 
I dont want to put blame on her at all but the bottle was labeled correctly it was just that the person at the pharmacy gave her a package that wasnt hers.  She should have looked at it.  I also think the people who give out the medication are just there to hand out the packages and just scan them ask for the co payment if there is one.    I know for my personal experience that the person who gives out the prescriptions are more of assistance than pharmacists. It doesnt hurt to google your medication and look for pics. Idk im really careful about my meds.

Originally Posted by Darla /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I have had very mixed experiences with Safeway pharmacies.  If there was a mistake made I doubt that pharmacist themselves made the mistake, but the pharmacist aids that are so prevalent at these stores.   I know at mine some of the pharmacist aids are truly inept and I could easily see them giving the wrong medication to someone.  

and no Carolyn I have never once had anyone at the pharmacy say anything to me about what I was picking up.   I think that goes to the difference between dealing with your friendly local neighborhood pharmacy that knows you and the big chain pharmacy (whether in a supermarket or not).

and not to absolve the pharmacy from their mistake which is absolutely horrible and inexcusable,  but where is this woman's head at?   I agree totally with Emily,   why wouldn't you read the bottle,  first see that the drug name seems strange and not what you had expected   and secondly notice that the name on the bottle isn't yours? Call someone.  the pharmacist,  your OB etc??      This is beyond belief,  especially if you are pregnant that you wouldn't double check everything.  She is equally to blame.

 
Usually the pharmist would go over the medication and the when's what's and how many's.  Did they grab and gave her the wrong bottle and provided her the info for her own meds?  I would not have checked the bottle if someone went over the contents with me.  I'm usually running behind on something so I would not have checked until probably the 2nd dose.  

 
I do recall getting a prescription for Retin A filled at Walmart a few years ago. The prescription clearly stated .1%.

When I was called to pay for the prescription, the pharmacist did not speak to me at all. The cashier took my money and gave me the cream, in a bag..

It was about an hour later that I open the paper bag and looked at the tube. The label clearly stated .01%

I went back to the pharmacy and showed them the error.

They refilled the prescription, reimbursed me the cost of about $17. and gave me an additional $17 as a way of saying sorry.

 
Scary.  I don't go to Walmart to get prescriptions.  I go to a pharmacy where they have consultations with a pharmacist.  Usually I get it filled at the pharmacy in the same building as my dr so I just get it filled on the way out.

Originally Posted by Dragonfly /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I do recall getting a prescription for Retin A filled at Walmart a few years ago. The prescription clearly stated .1%.

When I was called to pay for the prescription, the pharmacist did not speak to me at all. The cashier took my money and gave me the cream, in a bag..

It was about an hour later that I open the paper bag and looked at the tube. The label clearly stated .01%

I went back to the pharmacy and showed them the error.

They refilled the prescription, reimbursed me the cost of about $17. and gave me an additional $17 as a way of saying sorry.

 
This was my first - and last - Walmart pharmacy visit for me. I couldn't pass up the $17 Retin A....

From then on, I stuck to my regular pharmacy, and have had no problems since.

 

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