COMPANY bosses have apologised after the wrong medication was handed to a Barrow man.

Darren Hughes told of his concern after receiving a bag of prescription medication for his parents Kathleen and Douglas from Boots that was addressed to someone else and contained completely the wrong medicine.

A spokesman for Boots UK said: “At Boots UK, patient safety is at the heart of what we do and the care and welfare of every patient is our number one priority.

"We are currently investigating the relevant circumstances and we would like to apologise most sincerely to Mrs Hughes and her family as we work to resolve their concerns.”

Mr Hughes phoned the number on the medication he had received, and said he was informed this was not the first time it had happened.

He explained his concern not only for his parents but for others as well, calling the mistakes “unacceptable” and also saying that “someone could be killed”.

The pills provided were simvastatin, tamsulosin, and clopidrogel, which are used for lowering cholesterol levels, treating an enlarged prostate and thinning blood respectively.

A spokesman for The General Pharmaceutical Council, who act as an independent watchdog for UK pharmacies, said it will be investigating the issue.

“As the pharmacy regulator our role is to protect the public," said the spokesman.

“As part of our role we investigate concerns about pharmacy professionals and pharmacies that could suggest there is a risk to patient safety or could affect the public’s confidence in pharmacy.

“We would encourage any patients or members of the public who have a concern about a pharmacy, or pharmacy professional to raise it with us.”

Boots store on Portland Walk is investigating the incident and has not yet commented on how the mix up happened.

Mr Hughes is still concerned for his parents, who both suffer from dementia, who he says would take any medication provided to them without question.

Now he feels as though he must organise the medication personally because he does not trust the medication to be correct.

Despite events like this being rare, Mr Hughes said: “They’re an elderly couple with dementia so mistakes like this could end up being fatal.”

Boots UK said that this is the first report from Barrow of this kind.