Category: P

A classification developed by the New York State Ambulatory Care Reimbursement Demonstration Project in 1985 as a “sophisticated ambulatory care product definition.” There are 24 PAC categories, into which patient visits are allocated by computer depending on “who the patient is” (type of problem presented) and what is done (resources received).  

A person appointed to supervise, as, for example, the physician or surgeon appointed to observe the work of an individual applying for membership on a hospital medical staff or for certain clinical privileges. Something which is made (or grown). Often used in a marketing context to refer to whatever is sold to the consumer; in…

Information which is organized in such a fashion that it bears directly on a specific question asked or on a specific problem for which a solution is sought, in contrast with subject-oriented information which is typically oriented around a field or branch of knowledge. A dictionary and a telephone book provide problem-oriented information, answers to…

A charting method developed to follow a patient’s problems, needs, and nursing diagnoses throughout the hospital stay. In the nursing assessment, patient’s needs are identified and a care plan is written, with numbers assigned to each problem. Problems are numbered in the order they occur, not in priority. Documentation of routine care is reduced by…

A short segment of single-stranded deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) which is tagged with a reporter molecule, such as a radioactive atom, which is used in genetic studies to detect a matching DNA sequence.  

A person (or entity, such as a corporation) who authorizes another to act on his or her behalf as an agent.  

An amount of money upon which interest is earned or owed.  

A cell taken directly from a living organism; as contrasted with an immortalized cell, one which has reproduced outside the body. In physical therapy, a device consisting of a container, two solid conducting elements, and an electrolyte for the production of electric current by chemical energy.  

Some jurisdictions require that plaintiff submit their medical malpractice case to a screening panel before they bring in the courts. The panel usually consists of a judge, an attorney and a medical practitioner who works in the field in which the complaint arises from. The purpose of these screening panels is to identify claims that…

A physical or mental condition which has been discovered before an individual applies for health insurance. Insurers often deny insurance to individuals with certain preexisting conditions, or invoke a waiting period, or reject a group unless such individuals are excluded. Health care reform efforts today insist that there be no exclusion of individuals for such…