Paul Werner Quoted in Healthcare Risk Management on Patient Terminations

Buttaci, Leardi & Werner member Paul D. Werner was quoted in an article in the July 2024 issue of Healthcare Risk Management titled “Patient Termination Requires Right Steps, Good Documentation.” The article discusses the termination of a relationship between a healthcare provider and a patient.

Although not that common, Werner says when such terminations are necessary, healthcare providers must tread carefully to ensure that the patient is afforded other opportunities and that the potential liabilities are minimized. He says the most likely negative outcome would be the patient filing a complaint with the licensing board.

Werner says termination often occurs when a patient becomes overly aggressive with the provider or the staff in a disagreement over scheduling or payments, for instance, and the relationship degrades to a point that it is no longer safe to have the patient there.

“There are more egregious situations where patients are being discharged from care because they’re continually trying to seek care that the provider is not willing to provide. Most often you’ll see that scenario in the context of prescriptions,” Werner says.

He adds, “Certainly, providers that are dealing more with pain management issues are more likely to find themselves in a situation where there’s a dispute over access to prescriptions than their colleagues outside of that field.”

The full article can be read at Healthcare Risk Management (subscription may be required).

• Posted on: Jul 10 2024