The doctor-patient relationship can be a complicated one. It can be easy for a patient to become frustrated if they believe their doctor isn’t treating a medical condition as effectively as they should or if a doctor doesn’t have the time or empathy they need.
Doctors can become frustrated by patients who don’t follow their advice or instructions. Sometimes, personalities just clash, and the relationship can break down. In some cases, a doctor will notify a patient that they can no longer provide care for them. That can certainly leave a patient feeling angry, hurt and abandoned. Can they do that?
True patient abandonment is defined as the “unilateral termination of the physician-patient relationship without providing adequate notice for the patient to obtain substitute medical care.”
What is required to properly end a doctor-patient relationship?
According to the Georgia Composite Medical Board (GCMB), doctors typically have a right to terminate their relationship with a patient as long as they provide “adequate written notice, preferably through certified mail.” The minimum notice is generally 30 days. However, they must give the patient a “reasonable amount of time to find another health care provider.”
This can vary based on the type of care the doctor has been providing. For example, if the patient is being treated for a serious or chronic illness, they may need more time to find another provider. The same is true if they’re in an area where there aren’t a lot of health care providers.
When a physician ends a doctor-patient relationship, it isn’t always personal. They might suddenly close their practice and move out of the area without notice if they’re in some kind of legal trouble, for example.
Was harm done as a result of the way the relationship was terminated?
A key factor in determining whether a patient can file a medical negligence, malpractice or other type of claim is whether the termination of the doctor-patient relationship resulted in a medical condition getting worse or caused other harm. If you believe that applies to you or a loved one, it’s a good idea to get experienced legal guidance to determine whether there are grounds for a claim.
