| CAB |
|
Citizens Advice Bureau |
| CAPD |
|
Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis |
| CDM |
|
Chronic Disease Management - caring for a person with an ongoing illness such as diabetes or asthma |
| CHC |
|
Community Health Council |
| CHD |
|
Coronary Heart Disease |
| CMHT |
|
Community Mental Health Team |
| CPA |
|
Care Programme Approach |
| CPN |
|
Community Psychiatric Nurse |
| CSIW |
|
Care Standards Inspectorate for Wales |
| Caldicott Guardian |
|
The named NHS Officer responsible for delivering and implementing the recommendations of the Caldicott Report |
| Cancer |
|
An illness where certain cells in the body divide and grow in an uncontrolled way |
| Cardiac Arrest |
|
The word used for the heart stopping pumping |
| Cardiac Catheterisation |
|
A procedure where a catheter is fed into the heart to widen narrowed blood vessels |
| Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) |
|
Life saving technique improving heart massage and mouth-to-mouth breathing |
| Cardiovascular |
|
Relates to the circulatory system |
| Cartilage |
|
A rigid substance that holds parts of the body stable |
| Catheter |
|
A plastic tube inserted into the body to give medicines or drain away fluids |
| Chemotherapy |
|
Strong medicines that are used to treat cancer and leukaemia |
| Chest Drain |
|
A catheter inserted into the chest to drain off fluid or air |
| Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) |
|
Specialist mental health services provided to young people under 18 |
| Child Protection Register |
|
Maintained by Social Services to monitor children "at risk" under the Children Act 1989 |
| Chlamydia |
|
A bacteria, strains of which are a common cause of sexually transmitted infections. |
| Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS) |
|
A way of diagnosing conditions before a baby is born by taking a small sample of cells from the placenta |
| Chromosome |
|
The structure in the centre of each cell in the body holding genetic instructions |
| Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) |
|
A history of chronic progressive symptoms of coughing, wheezing or breathlessness caused by a narrowing of the airways that does not return to normal with treatment |
| Clinical Audit |
|
A continuous process of assessment, evaluation and adjustment of practice by doctors, nurses and other health professionals |
| Clinical Governance |
|
A framework through which NHS organisations are accountable for continuously improving the quality of their services and safeguarding high standards of care by creating an environment in which excellence in clinical care will flourish |
| Clinical Psychology |
|
The assessment and treatment of behavioural and other mental health problems |
| Clinical Trial |
|
A research project that tests and compares medicines, treatment, medical equipment, diagnosis tests or ways of preventing disease |
| Clinicians |
|
A general term for doctors and nurses working directly with patients in all parts of the health service |
| Community Based Health Services |
|
Services provided outside of a hospital setting, usually in clinics, surgeries or in the patient's own home |
| Community Care |
|
The help and support required to enable people to live independently in their own homes or in housing facilities in the community. Involves health and social services and other local authority services working together |
| Community Equipment Service |
|
A service which loans, for free, a range of equipment i.e. bath aids, commodes or large specialist equipment to people with disabilities |
| Community Health Council |
|
An independent statutory NHS Body, composed of local people, set up to represent the interests and views of patients, carers and the public |
| Community Nurses |
|
A collective term for nursing professionals, including practice nurses, district nurses, health visitors and school nurses |
| Consent |
|
Permission for a test, operation or procedure to go ahead |
| Constipation |
|
A symptom where a person finds it difficult to pass faeces |
| Contusion |
|
A medical word for bruise |
| Coronary Care Unit (CCU) |
|
Dedicated unit for specialist coronary care |
| Coronary Heart Disease |
|
Disease of the blood vessels surrounding the heart |
| CT Scanner |
|
Computer Tomography Scanner. A scanner that produces detailed cross-section images of the body that cannot be provided using conventional X-rays |