A transient patient refers to a person who suffer from medical conditions and receives treatment from a per occurrence basis.
These are patients who do not require long term treatment to treat their conditions as it occurs on a per episode basis.
For example, sufferers of certain types of asthma suffer asthma attacks once in a with no identifiable pattern to those attacks. Some can even go years without health problems and suddenly suffer an attack. These are considered as transient conditions and only require treatment when attacks occur.
It is in contract with asthma sufferers who need constant care and treatment to keep the condition under control.
On the other hand, people with kidney problems might have to go down to a dialysis center regularly for treatment. Otherwise, they would face life-threatening complications.
Expressly stated terms regarding transient conditions can often be found stated in life and medical insurance policies as exclusions.
They are meant to specifically state that certain conditions do not enjoy any coverage.
For example, transient ischemic attack (TIA) is often stipulated as exclusions in general insurance policies.
Transient ischemic attacks are strokes that only last for a few minutes. Causing victims to suffer symptoms like a sudden weakness of the body and numbness on the sides of the body.
These are mild stroke attacks and are often warnings that more serious stroke attacks might arrive in the future.
In a way, it’s the body’s way to encourage the sufferer to start living a more healthy and active lifestyle to deter a serious stroke attack.
Even though the are mild, TIA should not be written off as a freak accident. Those who suffer from it should get to a hospital right away as one won’t be able to tell that it’s a TIA until much later. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Sometimes, certain medical conditions or physical injury can also cause transient disability.
This occurs when a patient suffer from single short term disability episode. They then recover quickly and is able to regain their physique within a short time span.
Chronic back for example, can sometimes cause people to be bed-ridden for a short period of time.
Policy holders might not be able to make claims if their coverage are for long-term disability.
In general, patients are considered as transient patients if they have stayed at a facility for less than a specified number of days, or have received less than a specified number of treatments.
For example, a discharged patient stayed in a hospital for less than 30 days or have received less than 13 treatments might be classified as a transient treatment.
This can have implications not just towards the benefits and claims on insurance policies, but also how clinics, hospitals and health facilities administers records.
A patient who is does not live in the area of a clinic or pharmacy, obtains prescription medicine, and is never expected to return to the same facility to obtain more of the same prescription drug can also be categorized as a transient patient.
