Acronyms in healthcare

Formulation

Acronyms in healthcare are formed from the lead letters of words relating to medications, organisations, procedures and diagnoses.

Criticism

Acronyms have been described as jargon. Studies have been conducted investigating the effect of acronyms on communication and, in some studies, even healthcare professionals are unclear as to the meaning of many acronyms. The use of acronyms to describe medical trials has been criticised as potentially leading to incorrect assumptions based on similar acronyms, difficulty accessing trial results when common words are used, and causing a cognitive bias when positive acronyms are used to portray trials (e.g. "HOPE" or "SMART").

Use of abbreviations, such as those relating to the route of administration or dose of a medication, can be confusing and is the most common source of medication errors. Use of some acronyms has been shown to impact the safety of patients in hospitals, and "do not use lists" have been published at a national level in the US.

Examples

A number of sources provide lists of initialisms and acronyms commonly used in health care. The terms listed are used in the English language within the healthcare systems and by healthcare professionals of various countries. Examples of terms include BP, COPD, TIMI score, and SOAP. There is no standardised list.

References

References

1. (1 March 2014). "A sense inventory for clinical abbreviations and acronyms created using clinical notes and medical dictionary resources". Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association.
2. (16 December 2014). "SearCh for humourIstic and Extravagant acroNyms and Thoroughly Inappropriate names For Important Clinical trials (SCIENTIFIC): qualitative and quantitative systematic study". BMJ.
3. (22 August 2011). "Glossary of healthcare jargon and acronyms".
4. (1 April 2011). "Use of abbreviations by healthcare professionals: what is the way forward?". Postgraduate Medical Journal.
5. (2003). "Acronymesis". Texas Heart Institute Journal.
6. "Recommendations for Terminology, Abbreviations and Symbols used in the PRescribing and Administration of Medicines".
7. (March 2013). "The Joint Commission's "Do Not Use" List: Brief Review (NEW)". Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US).
8. "List of Common Medical Abbreviations, Acronyms & Definitions".
9. "2024 GOLD Report".
10. (2019). "SOAP Notes". StatPearls Publishing.