Question

A multinational pharmaceutical company is faced with the ethical dilemma of telling the general public the truth about a mishap in the company's drug labelling which has resulted in the death of four unborn children and leaves many more at risk if the drugs are not retrieved from the market immediately. But the challenge the company faces is that admitting this truth could attract crippling legal charges drastic reduction in patronage and reputation crisis. Give a reasoned ethical advice to the company showing clearly the Ethical basis of your advice the challenges you envisaged and how to deal with the identified challenges.​

Answer 1

Answer:

Drugs are labeled to unequivocally determinate their drug/pharmaceutical compounds, doses, declared strength and prospects, thereby giving to the patient concise data that ensure a correct medication.

The errors occurred during drug labeling may be due to professional negligence or errors in the print process. Regardless the cause, these errors must be immediately communicated to the competent government organisms (such as for instance, the Food and Drug Administration in the US), and the public in general, it in order to avoid damages to the patients that could be occasioned by its use. Error reporting should be considered to be independent of economical issues and pharmaceutical commercial interests because it can save lives and improve patient safety, which are the first objectives to be pursued by drug manufacturers.  

Moreover, it is important to note that the ISMP National Medication Errors Reporting Program (ISMP MERP) is an organization program that enables professionals working in health care institutions to report any labeling error.