If a physician retires without notifying his patients, what could he be charged with?

The situation where a physician retires without notifying his patients can lead to a charge of abandonment because it indicates a failure to provide ongoing care to those patients. Abandonment occurs when a physician-client relationship is ended without proper notice or care transition. In a healthcare context, physicians have a duty to ensure that patients continue to receive appropriate medical care even if they decide to retire or move on. By not notifying patients, the physician leaves them without access to medical care, which can lead to adverse health outcomes for those patients.

While malpractice, negligence, and fraud are serious concerns in medical practice, they typically involve active failures in care or wrongful actions. In this case, the key issue is the lack of communication and the resultant neglect of the physician's responsibility to their patients, making abandonment the most relevant charge.