Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

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…

The sum of the years which a group of individuals would have lived, had they not died early deaths. PYLL is a measurement of the loss to a society due to disease, war, auto accidents, or other causes. Also called “years of potential life lost (YPLL).”