Resource Library

Consider these risk management recommendations for what to do and what not to do when you discover a missed finding.

Generally speaking, once a physician-patient relationship is established, the physician has an ongoing responsibility to the patient until the relationship is properly terminated. Improper termination can result in a patient abandonment claim.

Inadequate coverage arrangements can lead to abandonment allegations. Any time you are unavailable to your practice (e.g., on vacation, observing holidays, attending medical conferences, suffering from an illness, treating other patients, etc.) appropriate coverage must be arranged. The following case studies highlight the risks of poorly planned coverage.

A carefully planned and executed patient notification process is the key to ensuring continuity of care and minimizing liability risk when retiring or closing a practice. The method by which you inform patients should be based on whether they are active or inactive. Consider the following recommendations:

Physicians’ and dentists’ personal interests and opinions can sometimes expose their practices to unwanted attention, particularly with the rate information travels today. For example, the recent negative publicity surrounding a Minnesota dentist whose hunting pastime made worldwide news, resulted in backlash that disrupted his practice. The overwhelming negative attention led to shutting down his professional social media accounts, practice website and the doors to his practice during this frenzy. The flood of negative comments online, directed at him personally, now sit side by side with reviews of his professional ability on third-party rating and review websites. This may be an extreme scenario, but it does illustrate the power of how online reviews and commentary can affect a physician and his or her practice. Because of this, proactive steps should be taken by health care providers to safeguard their practice from negative online publicity or comments that may occur.