Medical slang

Medical slang is a form of slang used by doctors, nurses, paramedics and other hospital or medical staff. Its central aspect is the use of facetious but impressive-sounding acronyms and invented terminology to describe patients, co-workers or tricky situations. It serves, in other words, as a convenient if often gruesome code between medical professionals. Medical slang is to be found in numerous languages but in English, in particular, it has entered popular culture via TV hospital/forensic dramas such as Casualty, Holby City, ER, House MD, NCIS, Scrubs and Green Wing.

Limitations on use

In many countries, facetious or insulting acronyms are now considered unethical and unacceptable, and patients can demand access to their medical records. Medical facilities risk being sued by patients offended by the descriptions. Another reason for the decline is that facetious acronyms could be confused with genuine medical terms and the wrong treatment administered.

In one of his annual reports (related by the BBC), medical slang collector Dr. Adam Fox cited an example where a practitioner had entered “TTFO,” meaning “told to fuck off,” on a patient’s chart. When questioned about the chart entry, the practitioner was quick-witted enough to say that the initials stood for “to take fluids orally.”^[1] While this may or may not be true, it indicates the danger of using informal — and frequently insulting — acronyms.

As a result, medical slang tends to be restricted to oral use and to informal notes or E-mails which do not form part of a patient’s formal records. It may also be used among medical staff outside of the hospital. It is not found on patients’ charts and, due to growing awareness of medical slang, often not used in front of patients themselves.

Non-English

Although online medical slang dictionaries are primarily from English-speaking countries, non-English medical slang has been collected by Fox from elsewhere. Brazilian medical slang includes PIMBA ("Pé Inchado Mulambo Bêbado Atropelado" meaning "swollen-footed, drunk, run-over beggar"), Poliesculhambado (multi-messed-up patient) and Trambiclínica (a "fraudulent clinic" staffed cheaply by medical students).^[1][2]

Annual round-up of medical slang

There is an annual round-up of the usage of medical slang by British physician Dr. Adam Fox of St Mary's Hospital, London. Fox has spent five years charting more than 200 examples, regional and national terms and the general decline of medical slang. He believes that doctors have become more respectful of patients, which has contributed to the decline. While its use may be declining in the medical profession, several dictionaries of the slang have been compiled on the internet.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Acronyms in healthcare
• List of medical abbreviations

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Doctor slang is a dying art". BBC. 18 August 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3159813.stm. Retrieved 2008-02-05. 
2. ^ Peterson C (1998). "Medical slang in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil". Cad Saúde Pública 14 (4): 671–82. doi:10.1590/S0102-311X1998000400002. PMID 9878893. 

Further reading

• Adam T. Fox, Michael Fertleman, Pauline Cahill, and Roger D. Palmer (2003). "Medical slang in British hospitals". Ethics and Behaviour 13 (2): 173–189. doi:10.1207/S15327019EB1302_04. PMID 15124632.  — Discussion of the "usage, derivation, and psychological, ethical, and legal aspects of slang terminology in medicine" as well as a glossary of common UK medical slang terms
• Adam T. Fox, Pauline Cahill, and Michael Fertleman (2002). "Medical slang" (PDF). British Medical Journal 324 (179): 179S. doi:10.1136/bmj.324.7350.S179. http://student.bmj.com./search/pdf/02/07/ed.pdf. 
• Paul S. McDonald (2002-08-24). "Slang in clinical practice". British Medical Journal 325 (7361): 444. doi:10.1136/bmj.325.7361.444/a. PMC 1123955. PMID 12193372. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=1123955. 
• Peter B. Hukill, A. L. H., and James L. Jackson (May 1961). "The Spoken Language of Medicine: Argot, Slang, Cant". American Speech (American Speech, Vol. 36, No. 2) 36 (2): 145–151. doi:10.2307/453853. JSTOR 453853. 
• Renee R. Anspach (December 1988). "Notes on the Sociology of Medical Discourse: The Language of Case Presentation". Journal of Health and Social Behavior (Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Vol. 29, No. 4) 29 (4): 357–375. doi:10.2307/2136869. JSTOR 2136869. 
• Genevieve Noone Parsons, Sara B. Kinsman, Charles L. Bosk, Pamela Sankar, and Peter A. Ubel (August 2001). "Between Two Worlds: Medical Student Perceptions of Humor and Slang in the Hospital Setting". Journal of General Internal Medicine (Springer New York) 16 (8): 544–549. doi:10.1046/j.1525-1497.2001.016008544.x. PMC 1495252. PMID 11556931. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=1495252. 
• Coombs RH, Chopra S, Schenk DR, and Yutan E (April 1993). "Medical slang and its functions". Soc Sci Med. 36 (8): 987–998. doi:10.1016/0277-9536(93)90116-L. 
• "Doctor slang is a dying art". BBC News. 2003-08-18. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3159813.stm. 
• National Lampoon. "Slang words that hospitals use, some are funny". totse.com. http://www.totse.com/en/ego/literary_genius/aclamt.html. 
• Dragonqueen. "DOCTORS' SLANG, MEDICAL SLANG AND MEDICAL ACRONYMS". http://www.messybeast.com/dragonqueen/medical-acronyms.htm.  — Medical Slang around the world
• Online Housestaff Community features Top 5 Annoying Medical Terms