Abandoning Lyme patients violates the core principles of medical ethics.
A woman in her 40’s came to me after months of searching for answers. She had been a successful business executive, traveling weekly and leading a large team. Now, she could barely get through a video meeting without losing her train of thought. Fatigue left her bedridden most afternoons. Her chart read “treatment complete.” Her reality said otherwise.
This scene isn’t rare. In Lyme disease care, too many patients with ongoing symptoms are told there is “nothing more to do.” Once the standard course of antibiotics is completed, the door to further evaluation or treatment quietly closes — leaving patients to navigate debilitating illness alone.
The Harm of Abandoning Lyme Patients
When chronic Lyme patients are denied further work-up or treatment, the consequences are real:
- “I was told my tests were negative, so my symptoms couldn’t be from Lyme. But I can’t walk my dog anymore.”
- “I finished treatment, but my memory is worse, not better.”
- “My doctor stopped returning my calls once the antibiotics were done.”
This is not benign neglect — it’s preventable harm. Left without care, patients may face:
- Disease progression from untreated persistent infection or co-infections
- Permanent neurologic damage, joint destruction, or autonomic dysfunction
- Loss of work, financial strain, and social isolation
- Increased risk of depression and suicide
“Ethical medicine means not walking away when help is still possible.”
The Cost of Walking Away
When physicians end care prematurely, patients pay the price — physically, emotionally, and financially. Many spend years and thousands of dollars searching for answers that their original doctors could have provided. The toll on families, careers, and quality of life is immeasurable.
Patients describe feeling abandoned, dismissed, and blamed for their own illness. This isn’t just poor medicine — it’s an ethical failure.
Warning Signs Your Care Is Ending Prematurely
Patients should be aware when disengagement is happening:
- “There’s nothing more I can do” without referral or next steps
- Dismissal of ongoing symptoms as anxiety or depression
- Refusal to investigate co-infections despite clinical suspicion
- No follow-up scheduled after treatment ends
- Being told “the guidelines say no” without discussion
If you recognize these signs, you have the right to seek a second opinion.
When Guidelines End
Standard treatment guidelines were designed for straightforward cases. But Lyme disease often isn’t straightforward. When a patient completes the recommended course of antibiotics and still suffers, the guideline has reached its limit — not the patient.
Ethical care requires physicians to look beyond the protocol and ask: What does this patient need now?
For more on when going beyond standard protocols is justified, see Ethics of Lyme Disease Treatment: Going Beyond Guidelines.
Ethical Lyme Disease Care Means Presence
The American Medical Association’s Code of Medical Ethics calls on physicians to put patient welfare first, avoid discrimination, and provide ongoing care when withdrawal would harm the patient. Lyme patients deserve nothing less.
For Lyme disease, this means:
- Pursuing additional diagnostics when symptoms persist
- Considering co-infections, persister forms, and biofilms
- Using clinical judgment to guide treatment, even when guidelines are restrictive
- Referring to specialists instead of closing the chart with “nothing more to offer”
Changing the Culture to End the Abandonment of Lyme Patients
Shifting Lyme care from dismissal to engagement requires:
- Expanded physician training in chronic manifestations and co-infections
- Clear guidelines for re-evaluating persistent symptoms
- Research funding to identify effective treatments for ongoing illness
- Referral networks for complex tick-borne cases
- Institutional safeguards to prevent abandoning Lyme patients based solely on “completion” of a standard treatment course
Have you felt abandoned after Lyme disease? Share your story—together, we can push for a medical culture that refuses to walk away when help is still possible.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is medical abandonment?
Medical abandonment occurs when a physician ends the patient relationship without providing adequate notice or ensuring continuity of care, especially when the patient still needs treatment.
Can I seek a second opinion if my doctor says there’s nothing more to do?
Absolutely. Seeking a second opinion is your right as a patient, especially when symptoms persist after standard treatment.
What does the AMA say about abandoning patients?
The AMA Code of Medical Ethics requires physicians to provide ongoing care when withdrawal would harm the patient. Ending Lyme care while symptoms persist may violate this ethical standard.
Resources
- AMA Code of Medical Ethics
- CDC Lyme Disease Overview
- Lyme Disease Treatment: Our Approach
- ILADS Guidelines on Lyme Disease
