E-Prescribing Errors: What They Are and How to Avoid Them

When doctors send prescriptions electronically, it’s supposed to make things safer—but e-prescribing errors, mistakes made during digital prescription transmission that can lead to wrong doses, dangerous drug interactions, or even death. Also known as electronic prescribing mistakes, these aren’t just technical glitches—they’re human-system failures that happen every day in clinics and hospitals. You might think computers reduce mistakes, but they often just shift the risk. A typo in a drug name, a missed allergy alert, or a default dosage set too high can slip through if no one double-checks. The FDA and CDC have both flagged e-prescribing as a growing source of medication errors, especially with high-risk drugs like insulin, opioids, and blood thinners.

These errors don’t happen in a vacuum. They’re tied to electronic prescribing systems, software platforms used by doctors to send prescriptions directly to pharmacies. Many of these systems are clunky, poorly designed, or overloaded with alerts that clinicians learn to ignore. One study found that over 70% of prescribers routinely turn off alert pop-ups because they’re too noisy. That’s like ignoring every car alarm in a busy city—you stop hearing the one that matters. And when you combine that with rushed appointments, tired staff, or unclear patient histories, the chance of a harmful mistake goes way up. These systems also struggle with drug interactions. For example, if a patient is on Olmesartan/Amlodipine and gets prescribed another blood pressure med, the system might not flag the combo unless it’s programmed right. Same goes for Irbesartan/HCTZ and potassium levels, or amiodarone and liver damage. The tech is there, but the safeguards aren’t always working.

It’s not just about the software. medication errors, any preventable mistake involving drugs that causes harm or could cause harm. Also known as prescribing mistakes, they include everything from wrong dosages to wrong patients to wrong drugs. And many of them start with an e-prescription. Think of the patient who got 10 times their normal dose of clomiphene because the system auto-filled a default value. Or the one who got secnidazole in pregnancy because the system didn’t check for gestational age. These aren’t rare. They’re systemic. And they’re avoidable—if the system is designed with real-world use in mind, and if clinicians are trained to question what the computer suggests instead of blindly trusting it.

What you’ll find below is a collection of real-world cases and practical guides that show how these errors happen, who’s most at risk, and how to protect yourself or your patients. From opioid labeling changes to drug recalls, from insulin shortages to unsafe steroid use, these articles don’t just talk about problems—they show you how to spot the warning signs before it’s too late. Whether you’re a patient, a caregiver, or a healthcare worker, you’ll find actionable insights here. This isn’t theory. It’s what’s happening right now, in pharmacies and clinics across the country—and how to stop it before it hurts someone you care about.