The problem with taking prescription meds and driving

On Behalf of | Oct 6, 2017 | Drunk Driving Accidents

When a Cincinnati resident thinks of an accident involving an impaired driver, they may have in their minds the classic image of someone who has obviously had too much alcohol to drive a vehicle safely yet still chooses to get behind the wheel.

Drunk drivers indeed pose a serious risk to everyone who travels on Ohio’s roads, but another danger Ohioans might ignore, however, is the possibility that a driver in this state can be impaired by some other drug, even a drug for which he or she has a valid prescription and is being taken according to directions. After all, some drugs, even though legal with a prescription, can have significant side effects that can leave people unable to drive.

The problem is that many medicines which are taken for a variety of ailments can cause a person to feel very sleepy and even doze off while doing an important or hazardous task, such as driving. Some people may react to their prescription medicine profoundly and experience fainting spells, inattentiveness or blurry eyesight. Obviously, very few people are able to drive safely when experiencing these symptoms.

It is a driver’s responsibility to make sure that they know how a medicine will affect them before they try to driver while taking it. It is also their responsibility to pull over if they discover that their medicine is unexpectedly making the sleepy or otherwise unable to operate a vehicle. When a motorist fails in this responsibility, he or she can be held financially responsible for the injuries he or she causes as a result.

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