My son was given the wrong vaccination!

[Sadie's Mom]

I brought my 4 month old son in to the pediatrician yesterday for vaccinations. We are following Dr. Sear's alternate schedule, monthly visits with fewer shots at each visit so he's not loaded up too much at once. He was to receive rotavirus and DTAP only- this is what I signed for and what was printed on the record that they gave me when we checked out.

WELL, I get home and there is a message on the machine to call the office. The nurse tells me she accidentally drew up and gave him Prevnar(pneumococcal vaccine) instead of the DTAP. He just received Prevnar about 5 weeks ago. So he was double dosed on one vaccine, and is now behind on DTAP She told me we would "catch up" on the shots the next time I bring him in.

I am beyond pissed and cannot believe the blatant negligance of this nurse- shouldn't they be double and triple checking these shots. What if they had given him something that wasn't age appropriate like MMR??!! Just wondering how you would proceed with dealing with this? I didn't say much on the phone to the nurse- I was in shock. My hubby is beyond pissed about it.

[nycmom18]

get a lawyer. these offices should not be able to get away with this.

next time, look at the shot in nurses hand right before administering.

file a complaint on the nurse.

sorry it happened to you.

[PaigeC]

I'm so sorry this happened to you! How is your son? Any reactions?

I agree that I would consult a lawyer. I would also write a letter to your state medical board and cc the doctor's office. Your state should have a formal complaint process so this gets documented.

Can you change practices? I know this could be seen as a simple mistake but they need to take it seriously.

[SuburbanHippie]

You need to be double checking them yourself. I learned the hard way too. Definitely file a complaint though.

[Sadie's Mom]

Thanks for the replies. He seems to be doing fine- I haven't seen any adverse effects. I am just sick about what happened, though. I had reservations about vaccinating in the first place (he is strictly breastfed) but he is in daycare and we decided it was the right choice for our family. Now I am regretting this decision- can we not trust the health care system with even the most basic medical procedures?

[Marnica]

can we not trust the health care system with even the most basic medical procedures?

IMO No we can't!

[nurnur4evr]

Medical personnel make mistakes. Yes, the system should have caught the error.

The minimal interval between Prevnar doses at your child's age is 4 weeks. So, in other words, it was given within a safe time frame, so you don't need to worry about the vaccine being doubled up. The second dose can be given 5 weeks after the first.

Hope that helps!

[~girlsmum~]

I would definately consult a lawyer and bring the person before a tribunal for an error like that. I haven't vax'd my girls and if they *accidentally* had done so I would do whatever I had to to have my ped reprimanded. I would accept no less than what I would accept to have happen to me for such an error.

[spero]

File a formal complaint with the state medical board, at the very least.

[anewmama]

I would file a complaint but doubt a lawyer would touch it. Since it did fit the minimum, there was no "real danger" according to THEIR schedule.

But I agree it's totally absurd that they can just go "oops".

[pantufla]

File a complaint with the medical board. Then write a complaint letter to the doctor's office. In it, request that you be notified -- in writing -- of what procedures they are going to enact so that this doesn't happen again. Finally, have a meeting with the doctor (and the office manager, if you can work it) to go over those procedures in person.

[hollytheteacher]

The same exact thing happend to my ds except that they gave him the regular dtap vax when i specified i wanted daptacel (or whatever the aluminum free one is called).

I didn't do anything because I LOVE ds's doctors, but i'm going to be way more careful with the nurses and watch like a hawk from now on...plus we may just stop vaxxing because of this "mistake" anyway.

[AFWife]

Originally Posted by anewmama

But I agree it's totally absurd that they can just go "oops".

On the one hand I understand that mistakes happen...but it's this ^ that bothers me the most. Did the nurse even sound concerned or apologetic?

[eireann]

[Emmeline II]

Originally Posted by AFWife

On the one hand I understand that mistakes happen...but it's this ^ that bothers me the most. Did the nurse even sound concerned or apologetic?

They called; most people don't get that much.

I doubt a lawyer would do any good as there is no apparent harm in addition to second shot being given within the accepted time frame.

[mom2tig99Nroo03]

sorry mama. i agree if you continue vaxing make sure o chcek yourself BEFORE anything else is given. even have the nurse bring the vials in and draw them up in front of you.

[rlenk]

I must be in the minority here. All this talk of sueing the pants off the doc and reprimanding the nurse really bothers me. This is exactly the reason why healthcare is so expensive in this country. Some extra cash in your pocket or taking away someone's livelihood wouldn't make the outcome of this error any better for you.

Medical personelle are human and humans make mistakes. It sounds as if they acted appropriately by admitting and informing you of the error. I don't know if they apologized or not, it wasn't clear to me in your post, but of course that should have been included as well. I seriously doubt that they quote/unquote "accidentally" gave him the Prevnar as others have suggested. It probably was a true error. If it wasn't that would be another story entirely.

My suggestion would be to let the office know how upset you are. Suggest that they change their procedures to prevent this from happening to anyone else. Change practices if you have lost trust in them and then let it go. Watch your son for any adverse effects from the vaccine and YES, verify with your own eyes anything that is ever given to him again. Lastly give your little guy a kiss and a hug and say a prayer to God thanking Him for keeping your son healthy and sparing him from a mistake that could have been much worse.

Flame Away!!!

[spero]

I'm not saying she should sue, but medical errors NEED to be reported; otherwise, there is no system of checks and balances in the medical system.

[Rosehip]

Originally Posted by rlenk

I must be in the minority here. All this talk of sueing the pants off the doc and reprimanding the nurse really bothers me. This is exactly the reason why healthcare is so expensive in this country. Some extra cash in your pocket or taking away someone's livelihood wouldn't make the outcome of this error any better for you.

Medical personelle are human and humans make mistakes. It sounds as if they acted appropriately by admitting and informing you of the error. I don't know if they apologized or not, it wasn't clear to me in your post, but of course that should have been included as well. I seriously doubt that they quote/unquote "accidentally" gave him the Prevnar as others have suggested. It probably was a true error. If it wasn't that would be another story entirely.

My suggestion would be to let the office know how upset you are. Suggest that they change their procedures to prevent this from happening to anyone else. Change practices if you have lost trust in them and then let it go. Watch your son for any adverse effects from the vaccine and YES, verify with your own eyes anything that is ever given to him again. Lastly give your little guy a kiss and a hug and say a prayer to God thanking Him for keeping your son healthy and sparing him from a mistake that could have been much worse.

Flame Away!!!

I agree.

[artgoddess]

Originally Posted by rlenk

I must be in the minority here. All this talk of sueing the pants off the doc and reprimanding the nurse really bothers me. This is exactly the reason why healthcare is so expensive in this country. Some extra cash in your pocket or taking away someone's livelihood wouldn't make the outcome of this error any better for you.

Medical personelle are human and humans make mistakes. It sounds as if they acted appropriately by admitting and informing you of the error. I don't know if they apologized or not, it wasn't clear to me in your post, but of course that should have been included as well. I seriously doubt that they quote/unquote "accidentally" gave him the Prevnar as others have suggested. It probably was a true error. If it wasn't that would be another story entirely.

My suggestion would be to let the office know how upset you are. Suggest that they change their procedures to prevent this from happening to anyone else. Change practices if you have lost trust in them and then let it go. Watch your son for any adverse effects from the vaccine and YES, verify with your own eyes anything that is ever given to him again. Lastly give your little guy a kiss and a hug and say a prayer to God thanking Him for keeping your son healthy and sparing him from a mistake that could have been much worse.

Flame Away!!!

I'm with you on this one. My DD is on a delayed/selective schedule as well. She had a fever one time when we went, and that threw our whole schedule off because she went extra time between vaxes. things happen like that which is no ones fault. You will probably have to adjust your schedule from now on out and that can be a little tricky. But tribunal? Lawyer? No, I'm thinking that's a bit much.