Hospital takes legal action as patient refuses to leave room months after being discharged
A hospital is seeking a court order to remove the former patient, who they say is taking up valuable time and resources.
A former patient of the Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare (TMH) in Florida was discharged on October 6 2025, with a formal discharge order being entered on October 7. However, she has continued to occupy an inpatient room at the facility ever since.
It is unknown what health condition she was suffering from to end up at the hospital in the first place.
According to lawsuit documents seen by USA Today, staff at TMH have made 'repeated efforts to assist the defendant in safely completing discharge', such as 'assistance, including coordination with family members and offering non-emergency medical transportation to obtain necessary identification'.
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Now, the hospital is taking legal steps to remove her and is also seeking assistance from the Leon County Sheriff's Office to help in doing so.
The complaint says that nearly a month after she was discharged, she was given written notice by the hospital on November 24, which said that legal action would be taken against her if she did not leave.
It continues: “TMH has limited inpatient beds. The defendant's continued occupancy prevents use of the bed for patients needing acute care."
The lawsuit adds that their staff and resources were being diverted to consistently address her 'continued presence'. They are seeking a temporary injunction requiring the patient to depart the premises.
It is not known if this situation has occurred before, or whether the hospital has previously had to resort to extreme measures to remove patients.
In a statement to USA Today, a TMH spokesperson said: "TMH is not able to discuss active legal matters, including background details."
According to the Independent, the lawsuit has come at the same time as a huge development for the hospital, as on March 11, city officials voted in favor of transferring TMH to Florida State University to establish an academic medical center in Tallahassee.
Florida State University News reports that the partnership will 'provide the opportunity to establish the hospital as a true quaternary center — expanding services, extending our reach, generating jobs, and fueling regional growth, all while preserving it as a community-focused hospital', as per a joint statement by FSU President Richard McCullough and TMH CEO Mark O’Bryant.
Following this transition, the hospital will brand itself as FSU Health.
According to court documents, a hearing has been set for March 30.
It is not clear how unusual or common this situation is, but those in the medical field often encounter bizarre situations.
In France, medical professionals were left both stunned and fearful after a 24-year-old man arrived at a hospital in Toulouse with a 16x4cm World War One German artillery shell stuck in his rectum that dated back to 1918.
Gerrard Kaonga