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Glossary of healthcare/ workplace terms

Acute Condition
an acute pain or illness is one that quickly becomes any of different types of diseases
very severe
Conscious
Addiction awake, thinking, and knowing what is happening
an inability to stop doing or using something, especially around you
something harmful, e.g. drug use, gambling
Consent
Aggravate permission or agreement to do something, e.g. physical
to make a disease worse examination

Allergen Consultation
a substance that can cause an allergy (= condition a meeting with a doctor who is specially trained to give
of the body reacting badly to something) but is not advice to you
harmful to most people
Contraindication
Allied health professional a sign that someone should not continue with a
allied health professionals (e.g. physiotherapists, particular medicine or treatment because it is or might
dietitians, podiatrists) provide complementary care to be harmful
patients in conjunction with recommendation from their
physician Deteriorate
to become worse, e.g. the patient’s condition
Ambulant
able to walk around Diagnose
to recognize and name the exact character of a disease
Analgesics or a problem, by examining it
a type of drug that stops you from feeling pain
Discomfort
Anaesthesia a feeling of being uncomfortable physically or mentally,
the condition of not feeling pain, usually through the or something that causes this
use of special drugs
Dosage
Ante/post-natal the amount of medicine that you should take at one
before/after birth time

Antibiotics Elective surgery

a medicine or chemical that can destroy or limit harmful chosen but not necessary, e.g. hip replacement surgery
bacteria in the body or limit their growth
Exacerbate
Briefing to make something that is already bad even worse
information that is given to someone just before they
do something, or a meeting where this happens Febrile
caused by a fever
Chronic
(especially of a disease or something bad) continuing Handover
for a long time the act of giving responsibility for a patient or patients
to another person, or the period during which this
Comatose happens
in a coma
Incision
(Community) clinic an opening that is made in something with a sharp tool,
a (community) building or part of a hospital where especially in someone’s body during an operation
people go for medical care or advice
Infection
Comorbidity a disease in a part of your body that is caused by
the fact that people who have a disease or condition bacteria or a virus
also have one or more other diseases or conditions
Inflammation
Compliance a red, painful, and often swollen area in or on a part of
the act of obeying an instruction, prescription or your body
request
Injury
Complications physical harm or damage to someone’s body caused
an extra medical problem that makes it more difficult to by an accident or an attack
treat an existing illness
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Glossary of healthcare/ workplace terms

Intervention
a type of medical action which is taken to improve
a situation or prevent it from getting worse, e.g.
prescription of medication
Guidelines
information intended to advise people on how
something should be done or what something should
be
Lifestyle
someone’s way of living, which in a medical context
includes the choices they make in relation to diet,
exercise, alcohol, smoking, etc.
Resuscitation
the act of bringing someone back to life
Self-care
the act of caring for yourself when you are ill or to stop
yourself from becoming ill, e.g. through meditation,
proper nutrition, sleep and rest
Social Worker
a person who is trained to help people who are at a
mental, physical, economic, or social disadvantage
Stable
a condition which is not likely to change

Malnutrition Subjective
physical weakness and bad health caused by influenced by or based on personal beliefs or feelings,
having too little food, or too little of the types of food rather than based on facts
necessary for good health Symptom
Management any feeling of illness or physical or mental change that
the activity of controlling or dealing with a patient’s is caused by a particular disease
condition in a way that is effective Trauma
Mobility (a) severe injury, usually caused by a violent attack or
the ability to move freely or be easily moved an accident

Neglect Trigger
to fail to give needed care or attention to someone to cause something to start especially in relation to
allergies
Nutrition
the substances that you take into your body as food Unconscious
and the way that they influence your health in the state of not being awake and not aware of things
around you, especially as the result of a head injury
Objective
based on real medical facts and not influenced by Vaccine
personal feelings or beliefs a substance containing a virus or bacterium in a form
that is not harmful, given to a person to prevent them
Policy (document) from getting the disease that the virus or bacterium
a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular causes
situations that has been agreed to officially by a group
of people or a workplace Viral
caused by a virus
Prognosis
a doctor’s judgment of the likely or expected Vital signs
development of a disease or of the chances of getting signs that show the condition of someone’s health,
better such as body temperature, rate of breathing, and
heartbeat
Prosthesis
an artificial body part, such as an arm, foot, or tooth, Ward
that replaces a missing part one of the large rooms into which a hospital is divided,
usually with beds for patients
Rehabilitation
the process of returning to a healthy or good way of life Welfare
after illness or injury physical and mental health and happiness, especially of
a person
Relapse
to become ill again, after making an improvement

Relieve
to make an unpleasant feeling, such as pain or worry,
less strong

Responsive
able to be improved or cured by a treatment
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Key hospital departments

Anaesthetics – pain services

Breast screening – mammogram examinations

Cardiology – heart and circulation

Chaplaincy – spiritual and pastoral wellbeing of patients, relatives and staff

Ear, Nose and Throat – also covers head and neck

Elderly – geriatric medicine

Emergency – ambulance or walk-in cases

Gastroenterology – bowel

General surgery – both day and more involved surgical procedures

Gynaecology – female urinary and reproductive health

Haematology - blood

Intensive care (Critical care) – severe and life-threatening illnesses and injuries

Maternity (Obstetrics) – antenatal and postnatal care

Microbiology – bacterial and viral infections

Neonatal – intensive, high-dependency and special care for newborns

Nephrology (Urology) – kidney (renal)

Neurology – nervous system

Nutrition and dietetics – specialist advice on diets

Occupational therapy – support for living with physical or mental impairments

Oncology – cancer

Ophthalmology – eyes

Orthopaedics (Rheumatology) – musculoskeletal system

Outpatient – including preventative and promotive health care, e.g. diabetic clinics, and
Outpatient – rehabilitations services, e.g. physiotherapy

Pain management – long-term pain management

Pharmacy – drug-based services

Physiotherapy – therapy, exercise and manipulation

Radiology (Diagnostic imaging) – X-ray, ultrasound, CT, MRI and other types of imaging

Sexual health (Genitourinary medicine) – family planning care

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Common medical abbreviations/acronyms

ADLs A&E/ ED b.i.d./ bid BMI

activities of daily living Accident & Emergency/ twice per day body mass index
Emergency Department

BP bpm COPD CVD

blood pressure beats per minute chronic obstructive cardiovascular disease
pulmonary disease

DOB ECG/ EKG GP/PCP HTN

date of birth electrocardiogram, a doctor who provides hypertension (high
electrocardiograph general medical blood pressure)
treatment for people who
live in a particular area

ICU IM IV mane
intensive care unit intramuscular Intravenous morning

mcg MI mmol N/A

microgram myocardial infarction millimole not applicable
(heart attack)

n.b. nocte N&V/ N/V NG

note well night nausea and vomiting naso-gastric

OT OTC PO p.r.n.
occupational therapy over the counter (non- oral as needed
prescription medication)

q q.h. q.2h./3h. q.i.d.

every every hour every 2 hours/ 3 hours four times a day
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Common medical abbreviations/acronyms

RA RBC ROM SOB

rheumatoid arthritis red blood count range of motion shortness of breath

stat t.d.s. US UTI

immediately three times a day ultrasound urinary tract infection

WBC y.o. ? 
white blood count years old possible/maybe/ increased/raised
suspected/tentative

   +/++
decreased/reduced/ caused/ led to/ resulted caused by/ resulted from present/ increased
lowered in presence

-
absent