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Although 30 days’ notice will be considered reasonable in most cases, ethical concerns can require a longer period. For example, physicians pledge to “do no harm” and also have an obligation to place patients’ welfare above their own interests.* Balancing patient and physician interests can get tricky when it will be difficult for the patient to find a new physician.

Terminating treatment of a chronic pain patient can become complicated, even when a patient agreement is signed and the termination letter is sent.¹

Terminating treatment of a behavioral health patient can be challenging, particularly when the patient’s behavioral well-being is dependent on the medications you are prescribing and the therapy you are providing.*

Some (fortunately rare) patient actions, such as a patient’s threat to harm a physician, call for immediate termination with no intermediate treatment period. Other patient actions, such as non-payment of bills or noncompliance with care recommendations, are reasons for termination but do not eliminate a physician’s duty to give a patient sufficient notice to obtain alternative medical treatment. Consider the following case, in which the physician believed the patient’s initiation of legal action against his partner justified his immediate termination of the patient relationship.*