Sections A-B, C-D, E-H,I-L, P-R, and S-Z are on separate pages
MA Master of Arts
MAA Medical Artists Association of Great Britain
MAAQ Multidisciplinary Audit and Quality Group In Manchester replaced by the ACTS.
MAB Metropolitan Asylums Board (obs)
MAC Medical Advisory Committee
MACA Mental After Care Association now called Together
MACC Manchester Alliance for Community Care - An alliance of local voluntary organisations who share common views about the rights of disadvantaged people to live in the community.
MACHEM Manchester Action Committee on Health for Ethnic Minorities - now defunct
MADEL Medical and Dental Education Levy
MADEN Medical and Dental Education Network (obs)
MAE Moves All Extremities
MAES Manchester Adult Education Service
MAFF Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (now part of DEFRA)
MAGGOT Medically Able, Go Get Other Transportation
MALDA Multi Agency Learning Disability Assessment
MANCAS Manchester Care Assessment Schedule
MAP Management Action Plan
MAPS MIND Arts Project Stockport
MAR2C Matching Resources to Care - This is a mental health information system for caseload monitoring devised to study cases of serious mental illness. MARC2 can compare data from Social Services, Health Services and the voluntary sector.
MARMAP Multi Agency Risk Management Assessment Process
MARP Multi Agency Risk Assessment Panel - decides whether mentally ill people are dangerous
MAS Minimal Access Surgery
or Manchester Alcohol Service
MASC Medical Advisers Support Centre - See NPC
or Medical Academic Staff Committee
MASH Manchester Action on Street Health
MAST Multi-Agency Support Team
or Military Anti Shock Trousers
MASTA Medical Advisory Services for Travellers Abroad
MAT Medical Appeal Tribunal
MAVIS Mobility Advice and Vehicle Information Service
MB Medicinae Baccalaureus Basic medical degree. Usually with CHB
MBA Masters in Business Administration
MBBS Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery
MBC Metropolitan Borough Council
MC Medicines Commission
MCA Motorcycle Accident
or Millennium Control Centre
or Magistrates Courts Committee
or Manchester Chamber of Commerce
MCCR Manchester Council for Community Relations
MCDH A dentist's qualification
MCF Manchester Carers Forum - A co-ordinating group that provides support to carers. It provides an opportunity for carers’ viewpoints to be noted and represented in the wider community.
MChD Master of Dental Surgery
MChOrth Master of Orthopaedic Surgery
MCH mean corpuscular haemoglobin
MCHC mean corpuscular l haemoglobin concentration
MCHM Manchester Centre for Healthcare Management (obs)
MCI Mass Casualty Incident
MCIN Manchester Community Information Network run a network of computer terminals with a local information service
MCL Manchester Community Living - Social Services in-house provider division.
MCN Managed Clinical Network
MCO Managed Care Organisation
MCP Male Chauvinist Pig (obs?)
MCPJ metacarpal joint
MCQ Multiple Choice Questions
MCRG Medical Career Research Group
MCSP Member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy
MCV Main Corpuscular Volume
MD Medicinae Doctor (Doctor of Medicine) first medical degree (US version)
MDA Medical Devices Agency (obs)
MDD Medical Device Directorate
MDDUS Medical and Dental Defence Union of Scotland
MDI Metered Dose Inhaler
MDO Mentally Disordered Offender
MDP Middle [school], Deemed Primary [school]
MDR Multiple Drug Resistant
MDS Master of Dental Surgery
or Middle [school], Deemed Secondary [school]
or Minimum Data Set
MDT Mobile Data Terminal
or Multi Disciplinary Team
MDU Medical Defence Union. Lawyers paid by insurance who defend doctors accused of negligence
or ut a me dictum - as directed by me
MEC Management Education for Clinicians
MEDITEL A GP Information system
MEDLARS Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System
MEDS Medical deputising service
MENCAP Royal Society for Mentally Handicapped Children &Adults
MEP Member of European Parliament
MEQ Modified Examination Question
MeReC MeReC Bulletin is published by the National Prescribing Centre
MERV Medical Emergency Response Vehicle
MESB Medical Education Standards Board
MeSH Medical Subject Headings
MESMAC Men who have sex with men
MESOL Management Education Scheme by Open Learning
METC Mersey Education and Training Consortium
MFA Malicious False Alarm
MFOccM Member of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine
MFPharmM Member of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine
MFPHM Member of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine
MFS Market Forces Supplement
mg Milligramme
MGA Myasthenia Gravis Association
MGC Museums & Galleries Commission (abolished 2000)
MGP Medendium Group Publishing
MGS Modernising Government Secretariat
MHAC Mental Health Act Commission
MHC Major Histocompatability Complex
MHG Mental Health Grant
MHIG Mental Health Information Group
MHIS Mental Health Information Strategy
MHMDS Mental Health Minimum Data Set
MHPAF Mental Health Performance Assessment Framework
MHPSS Manchester Health Promotion Specialist Service
MHRA Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency
MHRT - Mental Health Review Tribunal convened to hear appeals against detention under the MHA
MHT Mentalhealth Task Force
MHz Megahertz - megacycles per second
MI Myocardial Infarction - heart attack
or Mental Illness
MIDIRS Midwife Information and Resource Service
MIE Medical Informatics Europe
MIG Medical Information Group
MIGS Men In Grey Suits
MIMAS Manchester Information and Associated Services
MIMS Monthly Index of Medical Specialities. Guide to common prescribed drugs, inc. costs, used extensively in general practice
MIMMS Major Incident Medical Management and Support
MINAP Myocardial Infarction National Audit Project
MIND Organisation of mental health users
MINI Mental Illness Needs Index
MIQUEST A software system
MIRAS Mortgage Interest Relief at Source (obs)
MIS Management Information Systems
MISG Mental Illness Specific Grant - Government subsidy to supplement spending by local authorities on social care for mentally ill people living in the community.
MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MITAG Medical Information and Technology Advisory Group
MJ Municipal Journal
MLA Museums, Libraries and Archives Council
MLD Mild Learning Disability
MLSO Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer
MMC Modernising Medical Careers
mmhg Millimetres of mercury - what pressure is measured in.
MMedSci Master of Medical Science
MMHSCT Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust
mmol millimoles, a chemistry measurement
MMR Measles Mumps and Rubella vaccination
MMS Medical Management Services
MMSAC Medical Manpower Standing Advisory Committee
MMU Manchester Metropolitan University - formerly the polytechnic.
MMV Medicines for Malaria Venture
MO Medical Officer
MOH Medical Officer of Health - a predecessor of the DPH
MOI Mechanism Of Injury
MOR Millennium Operating Regime
mp melting point
MP Member of Parliament
or Market Price
MPA Medical Prescribing Adviser
or Masters in Public Administration
MPC Medical Practices Committee (abolished 2002)
MPDS Medical Priority Dispatch System
MPET Multi-Professional Education and Training levy
MPH Master of Public Health
MPharm Master of Pharmacy
MPhil Master of Philosophy
MPIG minimum practice income guarantee
MPS Modernising Public Services Group
MPT Maximum Part Time
MPU Medical Practitioners Union - radical doctors' union - small medical section of Amicus
MRCA Member of the Royal College of Anaesthetists
MRCGP Member of the Royal College of General Practitioners
MRCO Member of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists
MRCOG Member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
MRCP Member of the Royal College of Physicians
MRCPath Member of the Royal College of Pathologists
MRCPCH Member of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
MRCPsych Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists
MRCR Member of the Royal College of Radiologists
MRCS Member of the Royal College of Surgeons
MREC Multicentre Research Ethics Committee
MRFIT Multiple Risk Factor Intervention Trial
MRHDOC Melton Rutland and Harborough GP co-operative
MRHF Manchester Race and Health Forum
MRI Manchester Royal Infirmary
or Magnetic Resonance Imaging - a scanning technology
mRNA Messenger RNA
MRO Medical Records Officer
MRP Minimum Revenue Provision (part of capital control framework)
MRPSG Metropolitan Railways Passenger Services Grant
MRSA Methycillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus. A bug which resists antibiotics and breeds in hospitals
MRSC Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
or Manuscript
or Morphine Sulphate
MSAC Maternity Services Advisory Committee
MSc Master of Science
MSDS Material Safety Data Sheet
MSF Union for skilled and professional workers, including many NHS employees. Formerly ASTMS. Now part of AMICUS
MSGP-4 National Study of Morbidity in General Practice
MSH melanophonre-stimulating hormone
MSHHF Moss Side & Hulme Health Forum
MSI Marie Stopes International
MSK Musculoskeletal
MSLC Maternity Services Liaison Committee brings together professions involved in maternity services with lay people to agree procedures and monitor their effectiveness as they appear to individual women.
MSM men who have sex with men
MSOTW Man Slumped Over The Wheel
MSP Member of the Scottish Parliament
MSPCG Most Sparsely Populated Councils Group
MSS Manchester Social Services
MSSU Midstream Specimen of Urine
MSU Medium Secure unit or short for MSSU
MTA Management Team Assistant
or Message Transfer Agent (part of an email system)
MTB Mycobacterium Tuberculosis
MTFP Medium Term Financial Plan
MTO Medical Technical Officer
MUSCLE Multi-Station Clinical Examination
MV Millennium Volunteer
MVDP Makatan Vocabulary Development Project
MVI Malaria Vaccine Initiative
MWC Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland
MWEP Medical Workforce Expansion Programme
MWSAC Medical Workforce Standing Advisory Committee
MWSAG Medical Workforce Standing Advisory Group
MYS Manchester Youth Service
N Normal
or Nocte - at night
N & N Norfolk and Norwich
NA Nursing Auxiliary
NAB National Assistance Board (1948-1966)
NAC National Abortion Campaign
NACAB National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux
NACC National Association for Colitis and Crohn's Disease
NACEPD National Advisory Council on Employment of People with Disabilities (obs)
NACGP National Association of Commisioning General Practitioners
NACPME National Advice Centre for Postgraduate Education
NACRO National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders
NACT National Association of Clinical Tutors
NACVS National Association of Councils for Voluntary Service
NAD Nothing Abnormal Detected, or perhaps Not Actually Done
or No Apparent Distress
NAFHP National Association of Fundholding Practices (obs)
NAGPT National Association of General Practice Tutors
NAGS NICE Appraisal Groups
NAHAT National Association of Hospital Authorities and Trusts (obs)
NAHT National Association of Head Teachers
NAHWT National Association of Health Workers and Travellers
NAI Non accidental injury
NANOS North American Neuro-Opthalmology Society
NANP National Association of Non-Principals (now NASGP)
NANT National Appraisal of New Technologies
NAPC National Association of Primary Care formed from dying embers of Fundholding National Association to represent interests of PCGs
NAPMECA National Association of Postgraduate Medical Education Centre Administration
NAPP National Association for Patient Participation
NAPS National Anti-Poverty Strategy (Ireland)
NASEN National Association for Special Educational Needs
NASGP National Association of Sessional GPs
NASS National Asylum Support Service
NASUWT National Association of School-teachers / Union of Women Teachers
NATN National Association of Theatre Nurses
or National Association of Training Nurses
NatPaCT National Primary and Care Trust development programme
NAVB National Association of Volunteer Bureaux
NAVHO National Association of Voluntary Help Organisations
NAWO National Alliance of Women's Organisations
NB Nota bene - note well
NBA National Blood Authority
NBAP National Booked Admissions Programme
NBFI Not Bad For Ilkeston
NBG Lacking evidence of effectiveness
NBS National Board for nursing, midwifery and health visiting for Scotland (obs)
NBTS National Blood Transfusion Service (obs)
NBV Net Book Value
NC Nasal Cannula
NCAA National Clinical Assessment Authority
NCBV National Coalition for Black Volunteering
NCCA National Centre for Clinical Audit. Now absorbed into NICE
or National Community Care Alliance
NCCHTA National Co-ordinating Centre for Health Technology Assessment
NCCG Non-Consultant Career Grade
NCCSDO National Co-ordinating Centre for NHS Service Delivery and Organisation Research and Development at the London School of Hygience and Tropical Medicine
NCE Net Current Expenditure
NCEPOD National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death
NCH National Children’s Home - Action For Children
NCI National Captioning Institute
NCIL National Centre for Independent Living
NCIS National Criminal Intelligence Service
NCEPOD Confidential Enquiry into Peri-operative Deaths. An enquiry into surgical disasters or possibly National Commission for Encouraging Patients to be Odd and Difficult
NCMO National Case Mix Office
NCR New Commitment to Regeneration
NCS National Crime Squad
NCSC National Care Standards Commission (abolished 2004)
NCSL National College for School Leadership
NCT National Childbirth Trust. A powerful women's organisation.
NCV National Centre for Volunteering (obs)
NCVCCO National Council of Voluntary Child Care Organisations
NCVO National Council of Voluntary Organisations
NCVYS National Council for Voluntary Youth Services
ND New Deal
NDC National Disability Council
or New Deal for Communities
NDPB Non-Departmental Public Body
NDU Nurse Development Unit
NDPHS National Disabled Persons Housing Service
NDR Non-Domestic Rates (alternative name for business rates)
NDS New Deal for Schools
NDTMS National drug treatment monitoring system
NDYP New Deal for Young People
NEAS North East Ambulance Service
NEAT New and Emerging Applications of Technologies
NEC Cecrotising Enterocolitis
NED Non-Executive Director
NEET Not in Education Employment of Training
NEFA nonesterified fatty acids
NEJM New England Journal of Medicine
NELH National Electronic Library for Health
NERC Natural Environment Research Council
NES New Earnings Survey
NESTA National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts
NF Neurofibromatosis Hereditary neurological condition
NFHA National Federation of Housing Associations (obs)
NFN Normal for Norfolk. This is a legendary acronym, and any sightings in the wild should be reported to me.
NFP Not for Profit
NFR Not for resuscitation
NFW No further work
NG Naso Gastric
NGfL National Grid for Learning (obs)
NGO Non Governmental Organisation
NHAIS National Health Authority Information Systems
NHD Notional Half Day
NHFA Nursing Homes Fees Agency
a division of SB Tyler Clark, regulated by the Personal Investment Authority
for investment
business
NHIH No Hope in Hell
NHLI National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College
NHS(S) National Health Service in Scotland
NHSAR National Health Service Administrative Register
NHSBSA NHS Business Services Authority
NHSBSP NHS Breast Screening Programme
NHSCA NHS Consultants Association
NHSCCC National Health Service Centre for Coding and Classification (obs)
NHSCR National Health Service Central Register
NHSE NHS Executive (abolished 2002)
NHSEED National Health Service Economic Evaluation Database
NHSEHU National Health Service Ethical Health Unit
NHSIA NHS Information Agency (abolished 2005)
NHSIMC National Health Service Information Centre
NHSL NHS Logistics
NHSLA National Health Service Litigation Authority
NHSME NHS Management Executive now called the NHSE, because we no longer believe in management.
NHSnet Intranet for the NHS
NHSP NHS Partners
NHSS National Health Service Supplies
or National Healthy Schools Standard
NHST National Health Service Trust
NHSTD National Health Service Training Directorate
NHSTF National Health Service Trust Federation
NHSTU National Health Service Training Unit
NHSU National Health Service University (obs)
NIACE National Institute of Adult and Continuing Education
NIAS Northern Ireland Ambulance Service
NIC Net Ingredient Cost. The basic price of a drug.
or National Insurance Contribution
NICARE Northern Ireland Centre for Health Care Co-operation and Development
NICE National Institute for Clinical Excellence
or Northern Institute for Continuing Education
NICEC National Institute for Carers and Educational Counselling
NICON NHS Confederation in Northern Ireland
NICS Northern Ireland Civil Service
NICU Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
NICVA Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action
NIH National Institute of Health
or Nuffield Institute for Health
NILO National Investment & Loans Office
NIMHE National Institute for Mental Health in England
NINo National Insurance Number
NIP Neighbourhood Improvement Programme (part of SRB6)
NIPPV Non Invasive Positive Pressure Ventilation
NISS National Information on Software and Services now moved to HERO
NISW National Institute of Social Work (obs)
NJ Naso-Jejunal
NJC National Joint Council
NK Natural Killer (of cells)
NKDA No Known Drug Allergies
NLC National Lottery Commission
NLCB National Lottery Charities Board
NLIS National Land Information Service
NLM National Library of Medicine
NMAC National Medical Advisory Committee (obs)
NMC Nursing and Midwifery Council
NMET Non Medical Education and Training
NMGH North Manchester General Hospital
NMIS Nurse Management Information System
NMI Neuromuscular Impairment
NMS National Minimum Standards
NMSS Non Maintained Special School
NNDR National Non-Domestic Rates
NOF National Opportunities Fund
NOAH National Office of Animal Health
NOCN National Open College Network
NOMIS National Online Manpower Information Service
or Notification of Practice
NOS No other symptoms
or National Occupation Standards
NP National Park
NPA National Pharmaceutical Association
or Nasopharyngeal Airway
NPAT National Patients' Access Team
NPC National Prescribing Centre - based in Liverpool. Formerly known as MASC. Aims to promote high quality cost effective prescribing. Supports Health Authority professional advisers and practice support pharmacists by providing educational activities including therapeutics workshop. Published MeReC Bulletin which is distributed to all GPs on request.
or Net Present Cost
NPCRDC National Primary Care Research and Development Centre - based in the University of Manchester
NPFIT National Programme for IT in the NHS
NPG Modernising Health and Social Services: National Priorities Guidance HSC 1998/159
NPHT Nuffield Provincial Hospitals Trust (obs)
NPL National Physical Laboratory
NPO Nil Per Os (Nothing by mouth)
NPSA National Patient Safety Agency
NPT Near Patient Testing
NPV Net Present Value
NRB Non-ReBreathing
NRC National Regionalisation Consortium
NRCI National Reference Cost Index
NRE Non-Recurring Expenditure
NRF Neighbourhood Renewal Fund
NRPB National Radiological Protection Board
NRR National Research Register
NRS Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy
NRT Nicotine replacement therapy
NRU Neighbourhood Renewal Unit
NS Normal Saline
NSAID Non Steroidal Anti Inflammatory Drug
NSCAG National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group
NSEC National Smoking Education Campaign
NSF National Service Framework
or National Schizophrenia Fellowship (now called Rethink)
NSFMH National Service Framework - Mental Health
NSMI National Sports Medicine Institute UK
NSNR National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal
NSPCC National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
NSR Normal Sinus Rhythm
NSRC National Schedule of Reference Costs
NSU Non-specific Urethritis. Common STD
NSV National Supplies Vocabulary
NTDC New Town Development Corporation
NTG NiTroGylcerin
NTN National Training Number
NTO National Training Organisation
NTT Nuchal Translucency Thickness screening method for Down's sydrome
NTTRL National Tissue Typing Reference Laboratory
NUT National Union of Teachers
NUTS Nomenclature of Territorial Units
NVP Newly Vulnerable Person
NVQ National Vocational Qualification
NWCS Nation Wide Clearing Service.
NWDA North West Development Agency
NWIPP National Workforce Information and Planning Programme
NWMHDC North West Mental Health Development Council
NWPHO North West Public Health Observatory
NWRO North West Regional Office
NWU Neighbourhood Wardens Unit
NWRRL North West Regional Research Laboratory
NWSI Nurse with a Special Interest
NYCDOHMH New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygene
O2 Oxygen
O-sign unresponsive person with mouth open and tongue still in mouth
OATs Out of Area Treatments - payments to trusts for care for patients from more distant areas. Replaced ECRs.
OBC Outline Business Case - Spells out the business case in terms of functional need, anticipated costs and benefits, benefits realisation plan, risk management strategy etc.
OBS - Output Based Specification - spells out the detailed functional requirements in terms of what a proposed system is required to deliver
OCD obsessive compulsive disorder
OCPA Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments
OCR Optical Character Reader.
OCS Organisational Codes Service
OD Organisational Development
or overdose
or Once Daily
or outside diameter
or Right eye
ODA Operating department assistant
or Overseas Doctors Agency
ODPM Office of the Deputy Prime Minister
ODTS Overseas Doctors Training Scheme
ODO Operating Department orderly
OE On Examination
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
OEL Occupational Exposure Limit
OFSTED Office for Standards in Education
OGC Office of Government Commerce
OHAG Oral Health Advisory Group
OHE Office of Health Economics
OHN Our Healthier Nation Cm3852
OHP Overhead Projector
OHS Occupational Health Service
OIC Officer in Charge
OIE Office International des Epizooties
OIHCP Office for Information on Health Care Performance
OISC Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner
OJEC Official Journal of the European Community
om Omni mane - every morning
OMNI. Organising Medical Networked Information
OMP Ophthalmic Medical Practitioner
OMV Open Market Value
OMVEU Open Market Value in Existing Use
on omni nocte - every night
ONS Office for National Statistics The result of a merger in April 1996 of the Central Statistical Office and the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys.
OOH Out of Hours
OP Out-Patient
OPA Oropharyngeal Airway
OPAC Online Public Access Catalogue
OPCS Office of Population Census and Surveys Now ONS.
OPD Out Patient Department
OPHIS Office for Public Health In Scotland
OPM Office for Public Management
OR Operation Research
os Occuli Sinistrus (Left Eye)
OSB Other Services Block (now replaced by EPCS)
OSC Overview and Scrutiny Committee
OSCE Observed Structured Clinical Examination
OSDLS Open Source Digital Library System
OST Office of Science and Technology
OTC over the counter (medicines not requiring a prescription)
ou Right Eye
or Both eyes
OVE Occlusive Vascular Event
OWAM Organisation with a Memory
OWW One World Week
OXERA Oxford Economic Research Associates
Last updated 2/09/07