Medication mix-up leaves elderly Adelaide woman gravely ill

A medication mix-up has left an elderly northern suburbs woman gravely-ill in hospital.

The case relates to two women with the same first name but with very different medical needs who both use the same pharmacy in Adelaide's north.

The family of one of the women has told 9News they picked up on the mistake when they went to collect her medication in late June and were told it had already been taken.

It was then they learnt the other patient's health had rapidly started to deteriorate following the mix up, and she soon became so ill she was hospitalised at the Lyell McEwin.

SA Health has today refused to give an update on the patient's condition, citing privacy reasons.

The nation's Health Practitioner Regulator has told 9News it legally can't reveal if it's been notified about the incident or if an investigation is underway.

The pharmacy at the centre of this case has refused to comment.