Leaving Hospital AMA? (Against Medical Advice)
Not a Good Idea!
Judy was in the hospital for less than 2 days following an acute exacerbation of asthma. When I called, Judy told me that she left AMA, which stands for Against Medical Advice. Leaving AMA is when a patient leaves a hospital before the physician recommends discharge.
Patients who leave a hospital AMA, account for 1–2% of all discharges. This represents over 500,000 patients per year. And they leave, for a variety of reasons:
· Financial Concerns
· Family issues
· Substance abuse
· Miscommunication with hospital staff, and
· Disagreements related to medical treatment
The problem is that when you leave AMA you put yourself at risk for adverse health outcomes and a hospital readmission. Even though hospital physicians are to make “reasonable efforts” to protect you from harm, circumstances don’t always make this possible.
When Judy signed herself out of the hospital AMA she had a very high White Blood Count, indicating she had an significant infection that required treatment. But, unfortunately, she left the hospital without any prescriptions, follow up plans or continued treatment. Thankfully, Judy when back to the hospital and received the necessary care for her medical condition.
So, before you find yourself giving thought to signing yourself out of a hospital Against Medical Advice, consider notifying someone of your concerns. An empowered patient will call:
· Their Primary Care Physician — who in turn can speak with your hospital physician
· A hospital social worker or patient advocate who can act as an intermediary
· The Hospital Vice President of Nursing, or Hospital CEO. Someone in authority who will address your concerns and is well aware of the legal, medical and ethical issues that signing out AMA represents for the hospital and you.
