Errors in medication are to blame for a quarter of the claims settled against UK doctors who are members of the Medical Defence Union (MDU), according to its research.
Claims caused by errors involving medication added up to £12.5m over the last five years, said the MDU.
In the ten years prior to that period, the MDU paid out only £10m in claims relating to medication errors, said a report.
Such errors could be avoided by installing systems to review repeat prescriptions, monitoring patients on long-term medications and analysing adverse events, the MDU said.
The MDU insurers more than 50% of UK general practitioners.
