AN EXAMINATION OF WHETHER DISCHARGING PATIENTS AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE CONFER LEGAL PROTECTION ON MEDICAL PRACTITIONERS

The responsibility of a doctor to his patient commences as soon as the doctor undertakes to medically evaluate the patient. And once a doctor undertakes to treat a patient, whether or not there is an agreement a duty of care arises. | Patients are people with medical problems who seek a solution from the health team. The medical evaluation is a process of clinical decision making which follows a logical sequencing pattern of information obtained from the patient’s history and physical examination (algorithmic paradigm).