Discharge Letters

Question: We sent a patient a discharge letter by certified mail, but the patient did not sign for the letter within the 30 days at the post office. We want to fire this patient. Can we still do it if they never acknowledge the letter?

Answer: According to a senior executive at a malpractice carrier, "In addition to sending a certified letter, our attorneys recommend sending a letter by 'regular' mail. Sometimes patients will not open or sign for a certified letter, but will get a letter through regular mail. If the letter through regular mail is not returned, you can assume it was delivered.

"If the patient does show up at the practice, the manager should bring him into her office and tell the patient he is being terminated."

Either way, document what you have done. You can only do so much.