Health Unit Secretary
Home Health
Equipment and services provided to patient in-home to ensure comfort and care
Clinical Pathway
A method of outlining a patient's path of treatment for a specific diagnosis, procedure, or symptom
Holistic Nursing Care
A modern nursing practice that expresses the philosophy of total patient care that considers the physical, emotional, social, economic, and spiritual needs of the patient. Also called comprehensive care
transcription
A process used to communicate the doctors orders to the nursing staff and other hospital departments.
Director of Nursing
A registered nurse in charge of nursing services (may be called director of patient services, nursing administrator, vice president of nursing services, or director of care DOC)
Nurse Manager
A registered nurse who assists the director of nursing in carrying out administrative responsibilities and is in charge of one or more nusing units (may also be called unit manager, clinical manager, or patient care manager)
Assistant Nurse Manager
A registered nurse who assists the nurse manager in coordinating activities on the nursing unit
Nursing Unit Administration
Division within the hospital responsible for non-clinical patient care
clinical decision support system(CDSS)
A Computerized system that provides feedback to the physician regarding drug dosages, routes, frequencies as well as alerts regarding allergies lab values, and drug interactions.
Health Care Aid (Certified Nursing Assisant)
A certified health care giver who performs basic nursing tasks
Assignment Sheet
A form completed at the beginning of each work shift that indicates the nursing staff member(s) assigned to each patient on that nursing unit
Licensed Practical Nurse
A graduate of a 2 year school of nursing who is licensed in the state in which he or she is practicing; provides direct care and functions under the direction of the registered nurse
Resident
A graduate of a medical school who is gaining experience in a hospital
SWAT, HUC, Nurse, or SWAT Team
A health unit coordinator, a nurse, or a group of health care workers that are on call for all units in the hospital to provide assistance as needed (may also be called resource HUC, nurse, or resource team)
Homeopathic/Naturopathic Medicine
Alternative medical system that proposes that there is a healing power in the body that establishes, maintains, and retores health.
Nursing Intervention
Any act (treatment) by a nurse that implemets the nursing care plan or clinical pathway or any specific objective of that plan or pathway
Chronic Care
Care for illnesses of long duration, such as diabetes or emphysema
Diagnosis-Related Group
Classification system used to determine payments from Medicare by assigning a standard flat rate to major diagnostic categories. This flat rate is paid to hospitals regardless of the full cost of the services provided
Chiropractic Medicine
Complementary and alternative health care profession with the purpose of diagnosing and treating mechanical disorders of the spine and musculoskeletal system with the intention of affecting the nervous system and improving health
computer physician order entry(CPOE)
Computerized program into which physicians directly enter patient orders; replaces handwritten orders on an order sheet or prescriptions pad
Community Health
Concerned with the members of a community with emphasis on prevention and early detection of disease
Perioperative Services
Department of the hospital that provides care before (preoperative), during (intraoperative), and after (postoperative) surgery. It emcompasses total care of the patient during the surgical experience
Staff Development
Department responsible for orientation of new employees and continuing education of employed nursing service personnel (also may be called educational services)
International Statisical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems
Detailed description of known diseases and injuries. Each disease (or group of related diseases) is described with its diagnosis and is given a unique code, up to six characters long. Published by the World Health Organization
Computerized Nurses' Notes
Documentation entered directly into the patient's electronic medical record, usually at the patient's bedside on a portable computer
Hospitalist
Full-time, acute care specialist who focuses exclusively on hospitalized patients
Registered Nurse
Graduate of a 3-5 year college-based school of nursing who is licensed in the state in which they are practicing; may provide direct patient care or may supervise patient care given by others
Governing Board
Group of community citizens at the head of the hospital organizational structure
Case Manager
Health care professional and expert in managed care who assists patients in assessing health and social service systems to ensure that all required services are obtained; coordinates care with doctor
Nursing Service Department
Hospital department responsible for all nursing care administered to patients
Chief Executive Officer
Individual in direct charge of a hospital who is responsible to the governing board (The Superboard)
ICD
International statistical Classification of Diseases and related health problems
Web Address (URL, or uniform resource locator)
Keywords that when entered after "http://www. . ." on the Internet will take you to a specified location, referred to as a website
Acuity
Level of care patients would require on the basis of their medical condition; used to evaluate staffing needs
Acute Care
Level of health care, generally provided in hospitals or emergency departments, for sudden, serious illnesses or trauma
Patient Care Conference
Meeting of a patient's doctor or resident, primary nurse, case manager or social worker, and other health care professionals for the purpose of planning the patient's care
Neuro
Neurology
Voluntary
Not for profit
Triage
Nursing interventions. Classification defined as establishing priorities of patient care, usually according to a three-level model: emergent, urgent, and nonurgent
Primary Care Nursing
One nurse provides total care to assigned patients
Health Maintenance Organization
Organization that has management responsibility for providing comprehensive health care services on a prepayment basis to voluntarily enrolled persons within a designated population (Blue Cross, Sun Life etc.)
Ortho
Orthopedics
Inpatient
Patient who has been admitted to a health care facility for at least 24 hours for treatment and care
Outpatient
Patient who receives care at a health care facility but is not admitted to the facility for 24 hours
Accreditation
Recognition that a health care organization has met an official standard
Shift Manager
Registered nurse who is responsible for one or more units during their assigned shift (also may be called nursing coordinator or nursing supervisor)
Primary Care Physician
Sometimes referred to as "gate-keepers," these general practitioners are the first physicians to see a patient for an illness
Hospice
Supportive care for terminally ill patients and their families
nonclinical task
Tasks performed away from bedside
clinical task
Tasks performed bedside
Attending Physician
Term applied to a physician who admits and is responsible for a hospital patient
TJC
The Joint Commission (formerly the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health-care Organization [JCAHO])
patient
The person who recieves health care
Managed Care
The use of a planned and systematic approach to providing health care, with the goal of offering quality care at the lowest possible cost
Robotic Surgery
The use of robots in performing surgery
Custodial Care
Unskilled (untrained) care given for the primary purpose of meeting personal needs, such as bathing and dressing
career ladder
Upward movement from an entry-level job to the job that is a final goal
Surfing the Web
Using different websites on the Internet to locate informtion
Interdisciplinary Teamwork
Well-coordinated collaboration across health care professionals toward a comon goal (improved, efficient patient care)
WHO
World Health Organization
www
World Wide Web
certified health unit coordinator
a health unit coordinator who has passed the national certification exam sponsored by the National Association of Health Unit Coordinators
certification
a record of being qualified to perform certain acts after passing an examination given by an accredited professional organization
CEO
chief executive officer
CFO
chief financial officer
COO
chief operating officer
nursing unit
an area within the hospital with equipment and nursing personnel to care for a given number of patients
electronic medical record
an electronic file wherein patients' health information is stored in a computer system
CCM
certified case manager
DSU
day surgery unit
DRG
diagnosis-related group
hospital departments
different divisions in the hospital that specialize in services. ex. nutritional care department
DO
doctor of osteopathy
ED
emergency department
ER
emergency room
ECF
extended care facility
policy and procedure manual
handbook that provides such information as guidelines for practice and hospital regulations
Surg
surgical
Nursing team
those who provide nursing care-rn's lpn's/lvn's and nursing assistant
doctor's orders
health care a doctor provides in writing for a hospitalized patient
health unit coordinator
health care team member who performs nonclinical patient care tasks for the nursing unit.
HIMS
health information management system
HMO
health maintenance organization
doctor
licensed to practice medicine. physician
LTC
long-term care
UCR
usual, customary, and reasonable
MD
medial doctor
OB
obstetrics
OR
operating room
Peds
pediatrics
PACU
postanesthia care unit
PPO
preferred provider organization
PCP
primary care physician
recertification
process by which certified health unit coordinators exhibit continued personal and professional growth and current competency to practice in a field
Psych
psyciatry
RR
recovery room
SDS
same day surgery (go in, surgery, go home)
SAD
save a day (go in, surgery, stay a couple days)
SNF
skilled nursing facility
nurses station
work station for medical personnel in a specific work area