St Joseph Hospital: Patient Abandonment Laws

Patient Abandonment Laws

Beyond the above reasons for discontinuing patient care, disagreement begins to arise. What about refusing to treat a non-compliant patient? What if that patient is extremely non-compliant vs. occasionally non-compliant? In another vein, what about the patient who does not pay her or his bills? Is refusing to treat such a patient justifiable? What if the patient is unable to pay the bills? Would this make a difference? Or, one might consider an especially demanding patient. If a patient takes time away from the care of others, and continually calls the practitioner beyond normal care hours, is withdrawal from the care of such a patient acceptable? Yet another problematic case might involve a patient whose appearance or manners disgusted a practitioner. If a practitioner is so put off by a patient that it impedes her or his ability to be an effective therapist, would withdrawing from the case be an act of abandonment or patient benefit? Finally, perhaps the most addressed cases involve persons with AIDS. Does the fear of contagion validate withdrawal from treating such a patient? Across the literature, there is little agreement as to what constitutes abandonment in such situations. Legal cases have not added much clarity. (Southwick, 1998, p. 37-41)Beyond the above reasons for discontinuing patient care, disagreement begins to arise. What about refusing to treat a non-compliant patient? What if that patient is extremely non-compliant vs. occasionally non-compliant? In another vein, what about the patient who does not pay her or his bills? Is refusing to treat such a patient justifiable? What if the patient is unable to pay the bills? Would this make a difference? Or, one might consider an especially demanding patient. If a patient takes time away from the care of others, and continually calls the practitioner beyond normal care hours, is withdrawal from the care of such a patient acceptable? Yet another problematic case might involve a patient whose appearance or manners disgusted a practitioner. If a practitioner is so put off by a patient that it impedes her or his ability to be an effective therapist, would withdrawing from the case be an act of abandonment or patient benefit? Finally, perhaps the most addressed cases involve persons with AIDS. Does the fear of contagion validate withdrawal from treating such a patient? Across the literature, there is little agreement as to what constitutes abandonment in such situations. Legal cases have not added much clarity. (Southwick, 1998, p. 37-41)