“I had a strong faith before,
but it has gotten stronger
since this happened.”
I
t could happen to you. It could happen to
a loved one. It could happen even though
you did everything the doctor told you to
do. You followed orders to the letter. You
took the prescribed dosage and trusted the
medication would take care of the problem,
help you get better and feel like you again.
Only, you were wrong. Instead of
feeling a sense of euphoria and well-being
like the actors in prescription drug adver-
tisements would have you believe, you have
suddenly found your life turned upside
down and inside out because of an Adverse
Drug Reaction (ADR).
An ADR, according to the FDA, is
“A serious adverse event (experience) or
reaction is any untoward medical occur-
rence that at any dose: Results in death,
Is life-threatening, NOTE: The term
“life-threatening” in the definition of
“serious” refers to an event in which the
patient was at risk of death at the time of
the event; it does not refer to an event which
hypothetically might have caused death if it
were more severe. Requires inpatient hospi-
talization or prolongation of existing hospi-
talization, Results in persistent or signifi-
cant disability/incapacity, or Is a congenital
anomaly/birth defect.” 1
The Center for Disease Control (CDC)
states, “Adverse drug events cause over
700,000 emergency department visits each
year. Nearly 120,000 patients each year need
to be hospitalized for further treatment after
emergency visits for adverse drug events. As
more and more people take more medicines,
the risk of adverse events may increase. As
people age, they typically take more medi-
cines. Older adults (65 years or older) are
twice as likely as others to come to emer-
gency departments for adverse drug events
(over 177,000 emergency visits each year)
and nearly seven times more likely to be
hospitalized after an emergency visit.” 2
And the FDA goes on to say, “…ADRs
are one of the leading causes of morbidity
and mortality in health care. The Institute of
Medicine reported in January of 2000 that
from 44,000 to 98,000 deaths occur annually
from medical errors. Of this total, an esti-
mated 7,000 deaths occur due to ADRs. To
put this in perspective, consider t