Purpose: To define the situations under which a provider or department may and may not elect to dismiss a patient from receiving care within the department.
Definitions:
- Columbus Regional Health: Consists of Columbus Regional Hospital and Columbus Regional Health Physicians.
- No-Show: An appointment missed without notifying the department in advance or patients who arrive more than 10 minutes late for check-in and cannot be seen that day will be considered a no-show.
- Chronic No-Show: A patient will be considered a chronic no-show if the patient has logged three or more no-shows in a rolling 12-month period beginning with the first no-show event.
- Violent patient: A patient will be considered violent if he or she exhibits any hostile action of a hurtful nature, or any action that displays an intention to harm the practice or any employed or contracted person of the practice.
- Harassment: Harassment is any verbal or physical conduct that shows hostility toward an individual based on their race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, or any other class protected by federal, state, or local law, or that the individual finds offensive.
Policy:
- It is the policy of Columbus Regional Health that its providers are not required to continue treating a patient who is uncooperative or violent or who harasses any CRH staff.
- Patients may be considered for dismissal from the department for exhibiting any of the following behaviors:
- Chronically missing appointments
- Refusing to cooperate with the physician, advanced practice provider, or any employee of the practice
- Repetitive noncompliance with treatment plans recommended by provider
- Threatening lawsuits against individuals, the department, CRHP, CDI, or CRH
- Displaying a threatening or hostile attitude that makes any staff member feel unsafe
- Demonstrating violent or abusive behavior
- Violating the Controlled Substance Agreement
- Patients may not be considered for dismissal for either of the following listed reasons:
- Financial reasons, such as the inability to pay for services rendered
- Race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, citizenship status, pregnancy, disability, military status, religion
- Patient’s age may require a transfer of care to an appropriate provider