You requested that the patient come in for an appointment, but he refused. Should you call the cops?
You’ve been treating a 24-year-old man in your family practice for many years. He has an anxiety disorder and struggled with substance abuse in his adolescence, but he is now doing well and attending university. You noticed a prescription pad was missing after his last visit for a minor injury. A few weeks later, you received a call from a pharmacy asking you to confirm a prescription for Lorazepam 1mg bid, 300 tablets, and acetaminophen with codeine, 300 tabs, written for this patient. You notify the pharmacy that this is a forgery and request that it not be filled. Your coworker urges you to report this to the police, stating that it is permissible under the Health Information Act. You are enraged by the breach of trust with your patient, but you have never reported a patient to the police and are unsure what to do. The CMA code of ethics advises you to keep patients’ personal health information private and only consent to release to a third party with consent or as required by law, such as when maintaining confidentiality would result in a significant risk of significant harm. You’re wondering if your patient has a drug problem and if he might be selling this medication. You requested that the patient come in for an appointment, but he refused. Should you call the cops?