Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
Alcohol Abuse
the extent that this behavior interferes with the drinker's normal personal, family, social, or work life, and may lead to physical or mental harm
Arthritis
a group of conditions where there is damage caused to the joints of the body. Arthritis is the leading cause of disability over the age of 65.
Aggression & Violence
Offensive or hostile acts, or physical force
Audit
an evaluation of an organization, system, process, project or product. It is performed by a competent, independent, objective, and unbiased person or persons, known as auditors
Abuse Prevention
To stop one taking advantage of, betraying, maltreating or violating ones Human Rights. Halting an evil or corrupt practice.
Activities
Things that keep one occupied.
Anatomy
Structure & organisation of humans
Ageism
Bias against a person or group on the grounds of their age
Autism
A neurodevelopmental disorder that manifests itself in abnormal social interaction, communication ability, patterns of interests, and patterns of behaviour.
Alzheimer's Disease
A neurodegenerative disease charectarised by progressive cognitive deterioration together with declining activities of daily living and neuropsychiatric symptoms or behavioral changes. It is the most common cause of dementia.
Activities of Daily Living
An individual's daily habits such as bathing, dressing and eating. ADLs are often used as an assessment tool to determine an individual's ability to function at home, or in care.
Best Practice
The promotion of excellent care
Being Assertive
A skill achieved that is linked to self-esteem and considered an important communication skill.
Bereavement & Loss
Bereavement = deprive a dear person by death
Loss = defeat, deprivation, destruction
Challenging Behaviour
An act or manner, which is either aggressive or stressful
Care Planning
A scheme to provide or care for
Cri Du Chat
a rare genetic disorder due to a missing portion of chromosome 5. Its name, meaning cry of the cat in French, is from the distinctive mewing sound made by infants with the disorder.
Clinical
Concerning care and treatment
Client Finance
Money and assets owned by a patient
Crafts
a skill, especially involving practical involvement. It may refer to a trade or particular art or hobby.
Care
To provide for, mind or look after
Clinical Waste
Biological or human by products are essentially useless. Disposal of this waste is an environmental concern, as many medical wastes are classified as infectious or biohazardous and can spread infectious disease.
Communication Skills
The art of imparting and exchanging information
Core Care Skills
The most basic of talents to assist those providing, minding or treating people
Cardiovascular Disease
Ailments of the heart and circulatory system
Care Commission
The Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care (the Care Commission) was established in April 2002 as the new, independent regulator set up under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 to regulate care services in Scotland.
Dementia
Organic deterioration of mental faculties, the word dementia comes from Latin and literally means 'out of mind'. It is a progressive illness where brain cells die faster than they normally do with ageing. It affects about 1 in 10 of all adults over 65 years (to varying degrees). Approximately 600,000 people in the UK currently have this ailment.
Down Syndrome
A genetic condition from the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. Down syndrome is characterized by a combination of major and minor abnormalities of body structure and function.
Death & Dying
Death = Life extinct, cessation of being alive
Dying = In decline towards death, imminent fatality
Drug Administration
A treatment by offering and giving a medicine
Diabetes
A condition in which the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood is too high because the body cannot use it properly.
Depression
A hollow place, with diminutive power of activity
An emotional disorder
Disability
A physical, emotional or mental impairment.
Effective Communication
The art of imparting and exchanging information to a high standard.
Epilepsy
A chronic neurological condition that is characterized by recurrent seizures. It affects approximately 50 million people worldwide
Fragile x syndrome
The most common inherited cause of genetic mental retardation and is associated with autism.
Falls Prevention
The attempt to stop people tripping, stumbling, collapsing, slipping or losing ones balance.
Guidance techniques
Methods of directing people, for example had gestures to give a person with Dementia a clue to which direction to follow.
Huntington's' Disease
An inherited neurological disorder affecting up to 8 people per 100,000. It takes its name from the physician George Huntington who described it precisely in 1872. It is one of the first inherited genetic disorders for which an accurate test can be performed.
Human Rights
The concept of human beings having universal rights, or status, regardless of legal jurisdiction or other localizing factors, such as ethnicity, nationality, and sex. As is evident in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Independence
Human autonomy to be self caring
Jacksonian Seizure
An epileptic convulsion, which begins in the fingers and toes and progresses up through the body. The person remains conscious.
Jaundice
A yellowing of the skin, sclera (the white of the eyes) and mucous membranes caused by increased levels of bilirubin in the human body.
Keyworking
An indispensable worker, essential in the jobs continued success. To unlock the vital components of the job.
Learning Difficulty
Refers to developmental disability. Someone with a learning difficulty does not necessarily have low or high intelligence, nor any innate inability to learn. It just means this individual has an impairment to their ability due to a processing disorder.
Leadership Skills
The oar of influencing others effectively.
Moving & Handling
Relocating people or objects by touch, or utelising equipment.
Mental Health
A persons individual's emotional and psychological well-being
Medication
A substance, which is designed to treat an ailment.
Malnourishment
An imbalance in ones nutritional balance, due to inappropriate intake.
Mobility & Exercise
Mobility = a degree of movement
Exercise = movement designed to optimise health
Management in Care
Responsibility in exercising and devolving treatment to clients
Mental Health Acts
Laws designed to protect those with mental health Difficulties.
Mentoring
A developmental relationship between a more experienced mentor and a less experienced partner referred to as a mentoree
Model of Care
System of ensuring aspects of care are considered. Examples include Oram, Roper
Logan and Tierney and Integrated Pathways.
Nutrition
A science which studies the relationship between diet and states of health and disease
Natural Ageing Process
A degree of decline that happen to a smaller to greater degree, as we grow older.
Office Ergonomics
The discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of an office especially posture and positioning of staff.
Operational Management
A level of responsibility beyond client care, involving managing senior staff, budget, health & safety, discipline etc.
Patient Centred Care
Ensuring services are delivered whilst focusing on the clients needs wishes and required treatments
Parkinson's' Disease
A degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that affects the control of muscles, and so may affect movement, speech and posture.
Policy & Procedure
A set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as The Care Commission
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
A term for certain psychological consequences of exposure to, or confrontation with, stressful experiences that the person experiences as traumatic.
Personal Care
Non-clinical assistance offered to a client such as washing, using the toilet etc.
Problem Solving
Finding a solution to a difficulty
Pressure Sore
Portions of the bodies surface which maybe inflicted upon by a force.
Physiology
The study of the mechanical, physical, and biochemical functions of ones body.
Personal Development
Your growth in knowledge & behaviour to improve your quality of life or professional performance
Personal Performance
You acts, manners, behaviours and treatments in care
Partnerships in Care
The framework for ensuring best practice whereby the client is consulted (when able) and consents to varying help care professionals assisting and treating them.
Quality Assurance
Activities from design, development, production, installation, servicing and documentation. It introduced the sayings "fit for purpose" and "do it right the first time". It includes the regulation of the quality of care.
Recording & Report writing
A method of imparting information by use of pen and paper, or electronically such as computer storage.
Reminiscence Therapy
Reflecting back to periods of ones own life, or within history as a treatment
Restraint of Client
Limiting a client's freedom. This can be done legally for reasons of treatment or safety of the client of others. If this is done outwith the law it is client abuse.
Rett Syndrome
A progressive neurological disorder. The symptoms of this disorder are easily confused with those of cerebral palsy
Rheumatoid Arthritis
A chronic disease characterized by inflammation of the joints. Inflammatory cells release enzymes that may digest bone and cartilage, resulting in symptoms including pain, stiffness, warmth, redness, swelling, and loss of movement
Stroke (CVI)
An acute neurological injury in which the blood supply to a part of the brain is interrupted. That is, stroke involves sudden loss of neuronal function due to disturbance in cerebral perfusion. This disturbance in perfusion is commonly arterial, but can be venous.
Sleep Deprivation
An overall lack of the necessary amount of sleep. A person can be deprived of sleep by their own body and mind, as a consequence of some sleep disorders, or, actively, by another individual.
Staff Supervision
A senior member of staff mentoring and guiding a junior member of staff to improve performance and promote best practice.
Standards of Care
The degree of prudence and caution required of an individual who is under a duty of care.
Staff Appraisal
A method or system of measuring a staff member's performance.
Self Awareness
The explicit understanding that one exists. It includes the concept that one exists as an individual, separate from other people, with private thoughts. It may also include the understanding that other people are similarly self-aware. Self-consciousness remains a critical element in philosophy, psychology and
biology. Self-consciousness is a unique type of consciousness, in that it is not always present, and it is not sought after.
Therapy
A treatment to improve ones well-being.
Therapeutic Management of Aggression & Violence
To benefit or treat, by decision. To systemise responses to offensive or hostile acts, or physical force
Undernourishment
A reduced intake of fluid or foodstuff that does not meet your required intake.
Ventricular Failure
Usually of the left side, a condition that can result from any structural or functional cardiac disorder that impairs the ability of the heart to fill with or pump a sufficient amount of blood throughout the body.
Waterlow Scale
A tool to measure risk of developing a pressure sore.
Williams Syndrome
It is genetic disorder characterized by a distinctive, "elfin" facial appearance, along with a low nasal bridge; an unusually cheerful demeanor and ease with strangers, coupled with unpredictably occurring negative outbursts; mental incapacity coupled with an unusual facility with language; a love for music; and cardiovascular problems, such as supravalvular aortic stenosis and transient hypercalcemia. Williams syndrome shares some features with autism, although persons with Williams generally possess very good social skills
X-ray
A form of electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength in the range of 10 to 0.01 nanometres. Commonly used to
identify bone structure or tissue inflammation beneath tissue. The over use of x-ray can be dangerous.
Yearning
A strong emotion referred to within the grief cycle, also referred to as pining.
Zygote
A cell that is the result of fertilization. That is, two haploid cells-usually (but not always) an ovum from a female and a sperm cell from a male-merge into a single diploid cell called the zygote
Zzzzz...
The sound of someone who does not suffer sleep deprivation!