Socialist Health Association home page

Health and Social Services

Glossary of Acronyms

Sections A-B, C-D, E-H,M-O, P-R, and S-Z are on separate pages

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I

I4H Information for Health

I&D Incision & Drainage

IADL Instrumental Activities of Daily Living

IAFC International Association of Fire Chiefs

IAFF International Association of Fire Fighters

IAG Information Age Government

IAGI Intended Average Gross Income

IANI Intended Average Net Income

IAPO International Alliance of Patients' Organisations

IAVI International Aids Vaccine Initiative

ICATS Integrated Clinical Assessment and Treatment Services

IBMS Institute of Biomedical Science

IBS Irritable Bowel Syndrome

ICA Invalid Care Allowance now replaced by Carers Allowance

ICAS Independent Complaints Advisory Service

ICC Industry Consultative Committee

or Integrated Child Credit

ICD The World Health Organization's International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (now on 10th revision)

ICES Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences

ICF Intracellular Fluid

ICFM Institute of Charity Fundraising Managers Trust

ICHS International Centre for Health and Society

ICN Integrated Care Network

ICP Integrated Care Pathway

or IntraCranial Pressure

ICRC International Committee of the Red Cross

ICT Information Communication Technology

ICU Intensive care unit

ICW Integrated Clinical Workstation

or Indigenous Community Worker

ID Identify/Indentification

ID2000 Indices of Deprivation 2000

IDA Improvement Development Agency

IDDM Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus

IdeA Improvement & Development Agency

IDF International Diabetes Federation

IEMC Interbalkan European Medical Center

IETF Internet Engineering Task Force

IFM Information for the Management of Healthcare

IFN Interferon

IFPMA International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associations

IFS Institute for Fiscal Studies

IgG Immunoglobulin G (as opposed to IgD, IgE, IgM, IgA)

IHE International Health Exchange

IHEEM Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management

IHF International Hospital Federation

IHM Institute of Healthcare Management

IHRIM Institute of Health Record Information and Management

IHSM  Institute of Health Service Managers - now part of the IHM

II Intensive Interaction

IiP Investors in People

IL Interleukin

ILA Individual Learning Account

ILAF Independent Local Advisory Forums

ILCOR International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation

ILD Index of Local Deprivation (replaced by IMD)

ILF Independent Living Fund

ILM Intermediate Labour Market

ILP Independent Living Project

ILSI International Life Sciences Institute

IM Intramuscular

IMA Irish Medical Association

IM & T Information Management & Technology

IMCO Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (of the European Parliament)

IMD Index of Multiple Deprivation

IMHO In My Humble Opinion

imp impression - as in I don't know the diagnosis here

IMR Infant Mortality Rate

INASP International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications

INES International Network of Engineers and Scientists for Global Responsibility

INLOGOV Institute Of LOcal GOVernment studies

INSET IN-SErvice Training

INTRANET An exclusive and private type of internet inside an organisation.

IOP Instiute of Psychiatry

IoS Item of Service      Something that GPs get paid for on a itemised basis under the terms of the Red Book

IPF Institute of Public Finance

IPH Improvement Partnership for Hospitals

IPPC Integrated Pollution Prevention Control

IPPF International Planned Parenthood Federation

IPPR Institute of Public Policy Research

IPPU Intermittent Positive Pressure Ventilation

IPR Individual Performance Review

IPS Integrated Personnel System

or formerly the Indicative Prescribing Scheme

IPR Individual Performance Review

IR Inland Revenue (obs)

IRC Internet Relay Chat

IRL Initial Resource Limit

IRP Independent Reconfiguration Panel

IRR Internal Rate of Return

IRRV Institute of Revenues, Rating & Valuation

IRT Identification, Referral and Tracking

IS Income Support. Formerly Supplementary Benefit, and before that National Assistance, before that the Poor Law.

or Independent Sector

ISB Invest to Save Budget

or Individual Schools Budget

ISBA Incorporated Society of British Advertisers

ISBN International Standard Book Number

ISD Information and Statistics division

ISDD Institute for the Study of Drug Dependence

ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network - Cabling for fast digital transmission.

or It Still Does Nothing.

ISE Individualised Sensory Environment

ISG Information Services Group

ISIP Integrated Service Improvement Programme

ISO International Organization for Standardization

or Infrastructure Support Organisation

ISP Internet Service Provider

ISPOR International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research

ISQ In Status Quo

ISQua International Society for Quality in Health Care

IST Intensive Support Team

ISTAHC International Society of Technology Assessment in Health Care

ISTC Independent Sector Treatment Centres

IT Information Technology

ITN Invitation to Negotiate

ITS Independent Tribunal Service - now replaced by the Appeals Service

ITT Invitation To Tender

ITU ICU - the terms are interchangeable

or Internal Trading Unit

IUD Intra-Uterine Device (a Contraceptive coil)

or Intrauterine Death (A type of miscarriage).

IUHPE International Union for Health Promotion and Education

IV Intravenous

or Independent Variable

IVF In Vitro Fertilisation. Sex in a test tube, where the normal methods haven't produced any result.

IVP Intravenous Pyelogram. X-ray of the urinary tract

IVPB IntraVenous Piggy Back

IWCCE Isle of Wight Centre for the Coastal Environment

IWL Improving Working Lives

IYF Inter Year Flexibility

J

J Judge (in law reports)

JAMA Journal of the American Medical Association

JANET Joint Academic Network

JCB Joint Commissioning Board

JCC     Joint Consultative Committee

or Joint Consultants Committee

JCCO Joint Council for Clinical Oncology

JCE Joint Commissioning Executive

JCHMT Joint Committee for Higher Medical Training

JCHST Joint Committee for Higher Surgical Training

JCPTGP Joint Committee on Postgraduate Training for General Practice

JCVI Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation

JDC Junior Doctors Committee

JE Job Evaluation

JEMS Journal of Emergency Medicine

JFA Joint Fire Authority

JFC Joint Formulary Committee

JFSG Joint Finance Steering Group

JFSSG Joint Food Safety and Standards Group

JHU Joint Health Unit

JIGSAW Project designed to reduce the need for hospital beds. Co-ordinated by GMAS.

JIP Joint Investment Plan - what you have to write in your BSVP group

JISC Joint Information Systems Committee

JLDS   Joint Learning Disability Service (runs CLDTs).

JNC(J) Joint Negotiating Committee on junior doctors terms and conditions of service

JOL Jaws of Life

JPAC Joint Planning Advisory Committee

JPEG Jejunal Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy

JRCT Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust

JRF Joseph Rowntree Foundation

JSA Job Seeker's Allowance

JSE Joint Strategy Executive

JSG Joint Stategy Group

JSOG Joint Senior Officers Group

K

K-9 dog

KCL King's College London

KED Kendrick Extrication Device

KIGS Key Indicators, Geographical System

KISS Keep It Simple and Stupid

KPMG KPMG is an international firm of accountants. The letters don't seem to stand for anything now but it used to be Peat Marwick Mitchell.

KS 1 - 4 Key Stages 1-4. Part of the National Curriculum

KSF Knowledge and Skills Framework

KSS Kent Surrey and Sussex

KTD Kendrick Traction Device

KTP Knowledge Transfer Partnership

KVO Keep Veins Open

L

L1-5 Bones in the lumbar spine

LA Local Authority

LAA Local Authority Association

or Local Area Agreement

LAC Looked After Children - A child who is looked after by a Local Authority and a child who is in the care of the local authority for more than 24 hours; or provided with accommodation by the authority

or Local Authority Circular.

or Local Authority Company

LACOTS Local Authorities Co-ordinating Body on Food and Trading Standards

LAD Local Authority District

LAFS Local Authority Financial Settlement

LAN Local Area Network

LAP Local Area Partnership

or Local Action Plan

LAPIS Locality and Practice Information

LARIA Local Authorities Research & Intelligence Association

LAS Locum Appointment Service

or Lights And Siren

or London Ambulance Service

LASA London Advice Services Alliance

LASFE Local Authorities' Self-Financed Expenditure

LASGLH Lights and sirens, go like hell

LASS Local Authority Social Services.

LASSL Local Authority Social Services Letter

LAT Local Appointment for Training

LATF Local Asthma Taskforce

LATS Long-acting thyroid stimulator

LAWDC Local Authority Waste Disposal Company

LAY Look After Yourself

LB London Borough

LBC London Borough Council

LBGU London Borough Grants Unit

LCC Leicester City Council

or (obs) London County Council

LCD Liquid Crystal Display

or Lord Chancellor's Department (obs)

LCFS Local Counter Fraud Specialist

LD Learning Difficulties

or Local Democracy

or Liberal Democrat

LDA Local Development Agency

or London Development Agency

LDAF Learning Disabilities Award Framework

LDC    Local Dental Committee - the statutory body comprised of GDPs that represents dental practices in the local area.

LD/MH Learning Difficulties/ Mental Handicap

LDH Large Diameter Hose

LDL Low density lipoprotein - high levels are harmful

LDP Local Delivery Plan

LDSAG Local Diabetes Service Advisory Group

LE Lower Extremities

LEA Local Education Authority

LEC Local Enterprise Company

LEI Local Employment Initiative

LEL Lower Explosive Limit

LEO Leading Empowered Organisations

LETS Local Exchange Trading Scheme

LFS Labour Force Survey

LFT Liver Function Test

LGA Local Government Association.

LGBT Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender

LGC Local Government Chronicle

LGFR Local Government Finance Report

LGFS Local Government Financial Settlement

or Local Government Financial Statistics

LGHA Local Government & Housing Act 1989

LGIB Local Government International Bureau

LGIU Local Government Information Unit

LGMB Local Government Management Board

LGPS Local Government Pension Scheme

LGV lymphogranuloma venereum

LH Luteinizing hormone

LHCC Local Health Care Co-operative Scottish sort of PCG

LHG Local Health Group A sort of Welsh PCG

LIF Left Iliac Fossa or

Local Initiatives Fund

LIFT Local Improvement Finance Trust

LINC Library and Information Commission (obs)

LIO Local Implementation Officer or

Local Infrastructure Organisation

LIP Local Implementation Plans

LIS Local Implementation Strategy

or Library Information System

LISI Low Income Scheme Index. Measure of deprivation based on claims for exemption from prescription charges on grounds of low income.

LIT Local Implementation Team

LIVJM Liverpool John Moores University

LIZEI London Implementation Zone Educational Initiative

LKKS Liver, Kidney, Kidney, Spleen

LLL Life Long Learning

LLQ Left Lower Quadrant

LLSC Local Learning & Skills Council

LLTI Limiting Long term Illness

LMA Laryngeal Mask Airway

LMC   Local Medical Committee - the statutory local representative committee for all GPs in the area covered by the health authority.

LMCA Long-term Medical Conditions Alliance

LMP Last Menstrual Period

LMS Local Management of Schools

LMWAG Local Medical Workforce Advisory Groups, formed in 1996 to co-ordinate postgraduate medical education between groups of Trusts. There are around 5 or 6 in each NHS Region.

LNRS Local Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy

LOBNH Lights On But Nobody Home

LOC Level of Consciousness

LOL Little Old Lady

LOS Length of Stay. A measure of activity in hospital wards.

LNRS Local Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy

LPC Local Pharmaceutical Committee - a committee of pharmacists

LPG Liquified Petroleum Gas

LPM Litres Per Minute

LPS Local Pharmaceutical Services

or Lipopolysaccaride

LPSA Local Public Service Agreement

LRD Labour Research Department

LREC Local Research Ethics Committee

LRI Leicester Royal Infirmary

LRR Local Reference Rent

LRS Lactated Ringers Solution

LRTI Lower Respiratory Tract Infection

LSB Long Spine Board

or Local Schools Budget

LSC Legal Services Commission

or Learning & Skills Council

LSCG Local Specialised Commissioning Group

LSCS lower segment caesarean section

LSCWDC Lancashire and South Cumbria Workforce Development Confederation

LSHTM London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

LSP Local Strategic Partnership

LSTM Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

LSVT Large Scale Voluntary Transfer

Lt Left

LTA Long Term Agreement

LTC Long Term Condition

LTH Luteotrophic, lactogenic hormone - prolactin

LTM Learning to Manage Health information

LTP Local Transport Plan

LTPS Liability to Third Parties Scheme

LTSA Long term service agreement

LTVS  Long-term Ventilatory Support - help with breathing for people who cannot breathe without it.

LTSA long term service agreement

LUQ Left Upper quadrant

LWPG Local Winter Planning Group

LZ Landing Zone

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Last updated 10/11/06