Is your doctor committing malpractice when they refuse to give post-operative care?

Question

I had a medical procedure on March 13th 2020. On March 20th 2020 I was supposed to have my first post-op care check-up visit. Upon getting there basically the appointment ended up being just a meet and greet. They told me that the pandemic prevented them from giving me the treatment that I needed. which was actually to look at the surgical site and decide if I needed a different type of treatment. I'm getting Bill the same as if they actually did something procedurally. Now my second follow-up appointment will be done for virtual visit. Where again they won't be able to look at the site and determine whether or not it's healing properly and whether or not I might need something else. And likely I'll be billed the same. So my question is if this procedure becomes botched because the physician and/or institution that performed didn't do its dutiful post op duties is that considered malpractice and should I have to pay for it?

Tim Akpinar · Answer

Hopefully, it will not come to that and hopefully, you will enjoy a healthy recovery. But your question is difficult to answer because it calls for speculation as to whether the physician's conduct amounted to a breach of duty. If something did go wrong, the conduct would be evaluated with the specific facts of the case at hand, the medical records, and the basis for not taking you in with the circumstances of the health crisis with the virus. You could contact a Wisconsin attorney to see if they would offer a consult, but many attorneys would have difficulty speculating on a future contingency. The billing issues require more information in terms of chart notes and coding. Good luck 
 
Tim Akpinar

Q: Is your doctor committing malpractice when they refuse to give post-operative care?