1 Answers
In health care, an orphan patient is a patient who has been "lost" within the system or has no primary provider overseeing their care.
Usually, the primary provider is a general practitioner who takes care of some of the basic health needs and then refers to a specialist for complicated medical problems. Thus, orphan patients are sometimes referred to as "no-family-doctor" patients. The view from insiders and health care providers is that orphan patients tend to receive inferior care compared to those who have a "gatekeeper" coordinating the medicine.
The Wordspy entry for this phrase is as follows :
A hospital patient who doesn't have a family doctor. Also known as an unattached patient.
5 views
Answered