Healthcare professionals (HCPs) may face challenges with patients who are nonadherent to their treatment plan or who display disruptive or hostile behaviors. It is important for HCPs to seek a better understanding of the reasons for these behaviors before considering patient dismissal. However, when clinicians decide that terminating a patient-clinician relationship is necessary, it is critically important that the relationship be ended carefully, in a way that ensures patient safety and reduces the risk of a successful claim of patient abandonment. Strategies for Preventing and Managing Patient Dismissals provides best practice recommendations when considering whether to terminate the patient-clinician relationship.
