Doctors have long used the acronym-rich medical profession to make their own little personal comments in patients’ charts, too. I have no idea if they are international (though I plan on pinging my brother-in-law, the doctor), but some cited in the article below include:
CTD – Circling the Drain (A patient expected to die soon)
GLM – Good looking Mum
GPO – Good for Parts Only
TEETH – Tried Everything Else, Try Homeopathy
UBI – Unexplained Beer Injury
Alas, it seems this is becoming a (so to speak) dying language. Seems doctors are being asked, in court, what the abbreviations mean.
Dr Fox recounts the tale of one doctor who had scribbled TTFO – an expletive expression roughly translated as “Told To Go Away” – on a patient’s notes.
He told BBC News Online: “This guy was asked by the judge what the acronym meant, and luckily for him he had the presence of mind to say: ‘To take fluids orally’.”
Other non-acronym terms include “pumpkin positive” (i.e., if you shone a penlight into their mouth, the lack of brains would make the whole head light up like a jack-o-lantern).
I suppose it’s all for the best, but it’s a shame to see such personalized terminology pass.
(via normblog)
Ahh….but, there’s a standard for medical abbreviations. We’re not allowed to make up and use new ones that are universally recognized…mainly because of the example that you cited….but, also because of the possibility that the abbreviation could mean something completely different to someone else and lead to unwanted treatment.
Acronyms are great to use and fun to play with – just not in the medical field
P.S. my favorite standard med abbr are FUO and SOB