| ACHC |
|
Association of Community Health Councils |
| ASW |
|
Approved Social Worker - Under the Mental Health Act 1983 |
| Accident and Emergency Department (A&E) |
|
Now known as Emergency Department (ED) |
| Acute |
|
Describes a disease of rapid onset, severe symptoms and brief duration |
| Admission |
|
Coming into hospital either as a day-case or for a longer stay |
| Airway |
|
The mouth and windpipe |
| Allergen |
|
A substance that can cause an allergic reaction |
| Allergy |
|
The body's overreaction to a normally harmless substance |
| Anaemia |
|
The symptom caused by there being too few red blood cells circulating the body |
| Anaphylaxis |
|
A severe allergic reaction causing breathing difficulties |
| Angiography |
|
A diagnostic test showing the blood vessels supplying a particular part of the body |
| Angioplasty |
|
An operation to unblock or widen a blood vessel |
| Anoxia |
|
The symptom caused by there being too little oxygen in the body |
| Antenatal Services |
|
Those provided before the birth of a child, for example midwifery services |
| Anterior |
|
The front of the body |
| Antibiotic |
|
A medicine that works against bacterial infections |
| Antibody |
|
A protein that is formed when the body comes into contact with an allergen |
| Anticoagulants |
|
Drugs to prevent blood clotting |
| Anti-convulsant |
|
A medicine that reduces or prevents seizures or fits |
| Anti-depressants |
|
Drugs to treat the symptoms of depression |
| Anti-emeric |
|
A medicine that reduces feelings of sickness |
| Anxiety |
|
The term used to describe experiences such as chronic fear, tension and panic attacks |
| Artery |
|
Large blood vessels |
| Art Therapy |
|
Art therapy aims to support people's recovery using art as a creative process |
| Atrial Fibrillation (AF) |
|
Irregular heart beat, rapid and irregular heart and pulse rates |
| Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) |
|
ADD is a developmental problem people experience which usually begins at an early age. People who are also hyperactive may be diagnosed with ADHD |
| Audit |
|
A continuous process of assessment, evaluation and adjustment |
| Augmentation |
|
Enlargement |
| Autoimmune disease |
|
A disease where the body mistakenly attacks itself rather than a foreign substance |