Drug mix-up suspected after toddler almost dies

An investigation is under way after a 2-year-old girl almost died when she was apparently given the wrong drug by a Palmerston North pharmacy.

Emma Leader is recovering at home after her dice with death.

"It was touch and go," her mother, Lisa Leader, said yesterday. "I asked a doctor if she would live. He said he couldn't tell me, but they would do their best. It's been horrendous."

Emma's father, Gary Leader, told the Manawatu Standard his daughter was prescribed prednisone last week to help relieve night-time coughing.

But she received a different drug from the City Health Pharmacy, even though it was in a bottle labelled for Emma and described as prednisone.

The bag also contained ointment prescribed for another patient.

"We gave Emma the 5ml dose that was written on the bottle, and within a minute her eyes had rolled back and she went all limp and floppy."

Mrs Leader said she compared the medicine in the bottle with some prednisone that had been previously prescribed for one of their other daughters. The liquids were different.

"Totally different taste and look. We realised something was wrong, and zoomed back to the pharmacy."

Mr Leader said they then rushed Emma to hospital. At that point Emma's pulse was racing, but she was limp and floppy, with rolled-back eyes.

"They gave her charcoal to try to absorb whatever it was. Her heart was going at about 200 beats a minute," Mr Leader said.

After discussions between the hospital and the pharmacy, Mr Leader said he was told the bottle most likely contained an anti-psychotic drug called risperidone. Tests were still being done to establish if this were so.

City Health Pharmacy staff would say only that the incident was being thoroughly investigated.

- NZPA