What is the term for ending patient care after it has begun without transferring to an equal or higher medical authority?

• A. Consent
• B. Abandonment
• C. Resignation
• D. Negligence

Answer: (B)

Abandonment is when a clinician ends patient care after it has begun without arranging a proper transfer to someone equally or more qualified to continue that care. In EMS, once you’ve started treatment, you have a duty to see it through or to hand the patient off to another qualified provider or facility who can take over. Ending care on scene without that transfer leaves the patient without necessary ongoing treatment and can expose you to ethical and legal consequences.

Consent involves permission to treat, not the act of ending care. Resignation refers to leaving a position, not patient care duties. Negligence is a broader failure to meet the standard of care; abandonment is a specific situation where care is terminated without an appropriate handoff.