How an Oncology Nurse Can Cause a Chemotherapy Overdose

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oncology nurse delivering chemotherapyNurses are a critical part of an oncology team. If you or a loved one has cancer, you may look to your nurse to educate you about chemotherapy treatment, coordinate your care with other professionals, provide you with direct care, and give you the support you need during this challenging time in your life.

While nurses are vital parts of oncology teams, they can also make life-threatening chemotherapy mistakes.

Four Reasons Nurses May Make Chemo Mistakes

Chemotherapy errors happen for a variety of reasons, and not all of them are caused by nurses. However, nurses may contribute to chemotherapy errors if:

  • They are under pressure. Nurses have stressful jobs. They must meet the needs of their patients while working in fast-paced environments, sometimes without the support that they need to do their jobs safely. If a nurse is worried or stressed, she may make a serious mistake.
  • There are too few nurses to meet the needs of the patients. Nurses need time to review chemotherapy orders before they provide them to patients. Additionally, they need time to get answers to questions and to provide checks and balances before providing treatment. If there are not enough staff members to administer chemo efficiently, nursing mistakes can happen.
  • They are inexperienced. Nurses may all have the required education and certifications, but each medical facility has different procedures for providing chemotherapy and treating patients. Compliance with these procedures is critical for patient safety and requires on-the-job training. Additionally, newer nurses may benefit from supervision by more experienced nurses.
  • They have unclear orders from the doctor. Nurses implement chemotherapy prescriptions written by doctors. If the doctor’s orders are unclear, the nurse may give the wrong amount of chemotherapy in error.

If you suffer an injury from an error in chemotherapy administration, you might not know who is responsible for your injury until you start to work with an experienced chemotherapy overdose injury lawyer.

Our attorneys will do a thorough investigation to determine if it was a nurse, doctor, or another party who caused your chemotherapy overdose injury. Our staff nurse understands the professional responsibility of oncology nurses and will help our lawyers investigate your claim. Call us today to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation to learn more about your legal rights and your potential financial recovery. We are here for you 24/7/365.