Official Medical Letters

Physician Dismissal of a Patient Letter

February 16, 2021

Dismissing a patient is a real challenge for every physician. However, it often becomes inevitable. Although different doctors use a standard method to dismiss a patient, doctors must know about individualization because every patient’s case differs. For example, suppose a patient suffers from a chronic disease that needs regular treatment. In that case, the doctor cannot dismiss the patient and leave giving therapy until the patient finds a suitable doctor.

Why do physicians dismiss a patient?

In fact, there are many reasons why a physician chooses to dismiss the patient. The physician often makes this decision because the patient does not show a responsible attitude and wastes the doctor’s time. In this situation, the physician decides to abandon the patient.

A patient is also dismissed when the patient does not follow the physician’s instructions and tends to be more rigid in how he should be treated. Such patients are very annoying, and physicians usually terminate or dismiss them. Most often the reason for dismissal is:

  • Non-adherence to treatment
  • Aggressive, rude or threatening behavior
  • Patient is unable or not paying the bill
  • Patient is not attending the physician or is continuously missing the appointments
  • Lack of trust or unable to maintain a good relationship

Things to remember while writing a physician dismissal letter:

Although a physician has a right to dismiss the patient when he is not comfortable giving him treatment, there are certain things that a doctor is also required to take into consideration before writing this letter. We are going to discuss a few of them:

  1. The patient should have a reasonable time to find a new physician. For this, it is the responsibility of the physician to show his intent to the patient before withdrawing so that the patient does not get a gap in his treatment.
  2. There are situations where the physician hastily decides to dismiss the patient and loses a patient without any solid reason. In such situations, the doctor should consider the whole situation and then make this decision.
  3. The doctor must offer the patient treatment until he finds a new physician.

Sample letters:

#1

Hello Mr. Miko Doe. This is your physician Dr. Tehreem Fatima.

I have been writing this letter to discontinue my treatment for your [X] illness. I have made this decision after thinking a lot. I started your treatment on [Date] and found you complying with all the treatment plan we devised. However, after three appointments, you started showing negligence towards your medicine intake, which resulted in your illness being worsened. I can conclusively say this dismissal is due to non-adherence to the treatment plan.

I hope you will take good care of yourself and find a new physician soon. I have attached the treatment summary and this letter in case you need it for the new physician.

Take care.

Dr. Fatima.

#2

Hello Ms. Lucy Loe.

I am writing to clarify my decision not to treat you for your illness [X]. I know it is difficult for a physician to refuse to treat a patient, but in your case, I have no hesitation in doing so.

I have made this decision due to your behavior. Many times you behaved aggressively not only towards me, but also towards my assistant staff. On [Date], you were rude to Ms. Sana and threatened her if she injected you [X].

Ms. Lucy, I can understand an illness like yours can sometimes trigger impulsive behavior. But we have concluded that this behavior is not due to your illness but is in your nature.

Consider this letter as dismissal of treatment due to aggressive, rude and threatening behavior.

I wish you a speedy recovery.

Dr. Fatima.

#3

Subject:  Dismissal of Mr./Mrs./Ms.

Respected patient,

I would like to write this letter to notify you that I will not be able to provide you with my services as a physician because you have not been showing up for the scheduled appointments, which is causing me inconvenience. I will no longer be available to you from the 1st of next month. However, if you need time to find another physician, I can give you some time for this and provide you with my services until you meet your next physician.

I am ready to transfer your medical record to another physician’s office. An authorization letter is also attached to this letter, according to which, any physician is allowed to take your case and treat you.

In case you need assistance contacting local physicians that you find suitable for you, I am ready to lend you my support.

With warm regards,

Doctor ABC,

Signatures:

Physician Dismissal of a Patient Letter

Letter File for Word (.docx) -43 KB

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