Should a gay physician refuse to treat an openly homophobic patient?
I'm not saying about emergency situations (although in a true emergency I guess the patient wouldn't have the time or the strength to verbalize homophobia).
But what if that patient bullies another healthcare professional or another patient with the usual nasty comments that there are no real men any more and nonsense about gay agenda or words like "faggot" etc?
Ironically, I said to a patient who expressed such views that hospitals are spaces where are obliged to give help/treat whoever needs it and we do not tolerate racism of any kind.
When he was angry with me and said why do you care are you a faggot too? I said yes and escalated by reporting to the chief of the clinic saying I do not feel safe treating a person who actively spreads hatred for gay people.
I had some people say that I should just "dodge" all this and try to calm the patient down, but hell no. I treat everybody with respect but I also expect to be treated with respect as well.
Posted May 12, 2026, 2:52 PM UTC