| Ambulatory care sensitive conditions |
are defined as those conditions for which hospitalization can be avoided with timely and effective care in ambulatory settings. |
| Ambulatory multi-profile (specialty) group practices / polyclinics (HP.3.4.9) |
comprise establishments that are engaged in providing a wide range of outpatient services, by a medical and paramedical staff, and often support staff too, usually bringing together several specialities and delivering specific services of primary care and/or secondary care. |
| Assessment |
defines a formal evaluation of a process or system, either quantitative or qualitative. |
| Budgeting |
defines a process of elaborating a detailed plan for the future showing how resources will be acquired and used during a specific time period, expressed in formal, measurable terms. |
| Cardiovascular disease risk assessment |
refers to a comprehensive risk assessment in adults with no known cardiovascular disease using simple risk-scoring tools. This can help identify those at high risk and initiate early preventive interventions and this level of risk can help guide decisions about whether to initiate preventive interventions and treatment intensity. WHO respective guidelines are detailed in the HEARTS Technical package published by WHO. |
| Cardiovascular disease risk prediction charts |
are used to determine the level of risk for developing CVD over a defined period (e.g. 10 years). Calculations consider the combined effect of multiple risk factors, including age, gender, smoking status, blood pressure and total cholesterol or body mass index. WHO guidelines are detailed in the HEARTS Technical package published by WHO. See also WHO/ISH cardiovascular risk prediction charts |
| Cardiovascular disease risk stratification |
consists of the categorization and management of people according to their likelihood or chance for a cardiovascular event (heart attack or stroke). WHO guidelines are detailed in the HEARTS Technical package published by WHO. |
| Care coordinator |
is a dedicated health professional who acts as the key point of contact, from health promotion and disease prevention to targeted referral to specialist care. The care coordinator coordinates patient care throughout the entire continuum of care. The role of a dedicated coordinator is often allocated to a nursing professional. See also case manager. |
| Care pathway or care map |
refers to a tool (in addition to clinical guideline) that maps the patient pathway through the care system. It plans for the management of patient care that set goals for the patients and provide the sequence of interventions that physicians, nurses and other health professionals should carry out in order to reach the desired goals in a given time period. See also clinical guidelines and clinical protocols. |
| Care plans |
are a personalized record (written and/or electronic form) of the outcome from care planning discussions and decisions taken with the aim to address an individual's full range of needs. |
| Case manager |
is a dedicated health professional who is responsible for arranging the provision of continuous care across different services through the integration and coordination of services based on individual needs and system resources. The fundamental difference with a care coordinator is that the case manager not only ensures the continuum of care by focusing on the transition between levels of care, but also ensures the integration and utilization of system resources (e.g. insurance, payment schemes, social care arrangements etc.). See also care coordinator. |
| Clinical practice guidelines |
refer to systematically developed, evidence-based recommendations that support the health professionals and patients to make decisions about the most appropriate, efficient care in specific clinical circumstance. See also care pathway and clinical protocols. |
| Clinical protocols |
are defined as an agreed framework outlining the care to be provided to patients according to a type of care, describing why, where, when and by who the care is given. See also care pathway and clinical guidelines. |
| Controlled blood pressure |
is defined as a blood pressure of 120mm Hg systolic and a blood pressure of 80mm Hg diastolic. When systolic blood pressure is equal or above 140 mm Hg and/or diastolic blood pressure equal to or above 90 mm Hg the blood pressure is considered to be raised or high. |
| Dental practices (HP.3.2) |
comprise independent establishments of health professionals who hold a university-level degree in dental medicine or a qualification at a corresponding level and are primarily engaged in the independent practice of general or specialized dentistry. These practitioners operate practices (e.g. private or public and individual or group) in their own offices and either provide comprehensive preventive, reconstructive or emergency care or specialize in a single field of dentistry. |
| Dentist |
refers to a health professional that diagnoses, treats and prevents diseases, injuries and abnormalities of the teeth, mouth, jaws and associate tissues by applying the principles and procedures of modern dentistry. Occupations included in this category require completion of university-level training in theoretical and practical dentistry or a related field. |
| Dieticians and nutritionists (ISCO-08 2265) |
are health professionals who assess, plan and implement programmes to enhance the impact of food and nutrition on human health. Part of this subgroup are clinical dieticians, nutritionists, public health nutritionists, etc. |
| Discharge letter |
refers to the form completed by the provider releasing the patient containing information regarding procedures undertaken, diagnosis and treatment. |
| Discharge planning |
refers to the process by which an admitted inpatient's needs on discharge are anticipated, planned for or arranged. |
| Dispensarization |
is a method for monitoring the health of selected population groups through screening (case-detection) and systematic treatment and follow-up. It is prevalent in members of the Commonwealth of Independent States. |
| District paediatric doctors (part of ISCO-08 2211) |
are a type of generalist medical practitioners often found in countries of the Commonwealth of Independent states. |
| District therapeutists (part of ISCO-08 2211) |
are a type of generalist medical practitioners often found in countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States. |
| Essential medicines list |
is developed by the WHO and serves as a guide for the development of national and institutional essential medicine lists. It is updated and revised every two years by the WHO Expert Committee on Selection and Use of Medicines. The latest update, published on 6 June 2017, marks the 40th Anniversary of this flagship WHO tool. |
| Feldscher (part of ISCO-08 2240) |
are a type of paramedical practitioners. |
| Final diagnosis |
refers to the confirmation of a diagnosis not just the preliminary diagnosis that requires the patient to visit another physician. |
| Follow-up consultations/visits |
include services offered to manage condition after diagnosis. |
| Foot vibration perception by tuning fork |
measures the sensitivity to vibration and is important for early diagnosis of diabetic neuropathy and prevention of diabetic foot amputation. |
| Formulary |
refers to a list of drugs, usually by their generic names, and indications for their use. A formulary is intended to include a sufficient range of medicines to enable medical practitioners to prescribe all medically appropriate treatment for all reasonably common illnesses. |
| Gatekeeper |
is a primary care health professional who has responsibilities for the provision of primary care as well as for the coordination of specialized care and referral. |
| General medical practitioners/family medicine doctors/primary care doctors (part of ISCO-08 2211) |
are a type of generalist medical practitioners. |
| Generalist medical practitioners (ISCO-08 2211) |
are physicians including family and primary care doctors, who do not limit their practice to certain disease categories or methods of treatment and may assume responsibility for the provision of continuing and comprehensive medical care to individuals, families and communities. Occupations included in this category require completion of a university-level degree in basic medical education plus postgraduate clinical training or equivalent for competent performance. Medical interns who have completed their university education in basic medical education and are undertaking postgraduate clinical training are included here. Although in some countries "general practice" and "family medicine" may be considered as medical specializations, these occupations should always be classified here. In Commonwealth of Independent States, district paediatric doctors and district therapeutists are included in this category. |
| HbA1c |
is the glycated haemoglobin test used in the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. WHO-backed expert report recommending the acceptability of this test as an additional test to diagnose diabetes is found here http://www.who.int/diabetes/publications/diagnosis_diabetes2011/en/. |
| HEADS assessment |
is a check-list approach which health workers could use to understand the adolescent they are working with. The rapid assessment includes questions that provide information on the psychological and social dimensions of the adolescent's life including: family life, interests and education performance, eating and exercise habits, hopes for the future, social and recreational activities, whether they smoke or use other psychoactive substances, thoughts and feelings about their sexual activity, and how they feel and whether they have thought of hurting themselves. The acronym stands for Home Education Eating Exercise Ambition Activities Drug-use Sexuality Suicide. |
| Health literacy |
is defined as the achievement of a certain level of knowledge, personal skills and confidence to take action to improve personal and community health by changing personal lifestyles and living conditions. http://www.who.int/cardiovascular_diseases/guidelines/Chart_predictions/en/ |
| Incentives |
refer to rewards reinforcing positive performance and removing barriers that perversely effect desired performance to inspire and motivate health professionals, organizations and patients to work towards defined objectives. |
| Integrated health and social care plan |
is a dynamic document based on an assessment which outlines the types and frequency of care services that a client receives. It may include strategies, interventions, continued evaluation and actions intended to help a person to achieve or maintain goals. Integrated health and social care plan provides coordination of care across the system's different functions, activities and operating units. It encompasses horizontal and vertical integration including discharge management and rehabilitation arrangements, a transfer letter to primary/community care services/rehabilitation, etc. |
| Medical equipment |
is a medical device requiring calibration, maintenance, repair, user training, and decommissioning - activities usually managed by clinical engineers. Medical equipment is used for the specific purposes of diagnosis and treatment of disease or rehabilitation following disease or injury; it can be used either alone or in combination with any accessory, consumable, or other piece of medical equipment. Medical equipment excludes implantable, disposable or single-use medical devices. |
| Midwives (associate professionals) (ISCO-08 3222) |
implement care, treatment and referral plans already established by medical, midwifery and other health professionals. |
| Midwives (professionals) (ISCO-08 2222) |
plan, manage, provide and evaluate midwifery care services before, during and after pregnancy and childbirth. They provide delivery care for reducing health risks to women and new-born children, working autonomously or in teams with other health professionals. |
| Narrow specialists |
are specialized physicians in countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and Eastern Europe often working in polyclinics and outpatient departments of hospitals. They usually have less clinical training than specialist medical practitioners, and instead a brief training course for initial specialization. They primarily provide medical treatment, while the generalist medical practitioner performs the follow-up with the patient. |
| National cancer screening programme |
refers to a government-endorsed programme whereby screening is offered. NGO-led programmes or national recommendations for screening at the patient's cost, do not qualify as a national screening programme. |
| Nurses (associate professionals) (ISCO-08 3221) |
provide basic nursing and personal care for people in need of such care due to effects of ageing, illness, injury or other physical or mental impairment. They generally work under the supervision of, and in support of, implementation of health care, treatment and referral plans established by medical, nursing and other health professionals. The distinctions between nursing and midwifery professionals and associate professionals should be made on the basis of the nature of the work performed in relation to the tasks specified in this definition and in the relevant unit group definitions. The qualifications held by individuals or that predominate in the country are not the main factor in making this distinction, as training arrangements for nurses and midwives vary widely between countries and have varied over time within countries. |
| Nurses (professionals) (ISCO-08 2221) |
provide treatment, support and care services for people who are in need of nursing care due to the effects of ageing, injury, illness or other physical or mental impairment, or potential risks to health. They assume responsibility for the planning and management of care of patients, including the supervision of other health care workers, working autonomously or in teams with medical doctors and others in the practical application of preventive and curative measures. Nurses (professionals) include general practice nurses, district nurse, specialist nurse and nurse practitioners. |
| Nurses and midwives offices (part of HP.3.3) |
(e.g. health post) are providers of ambulatory health care and comprise independent health professionals, in this case nurses and midwives, that operate in their own office without a generalist or specialist physicians. |
| Occupational therapists (part of ISCO-08 2269) |
are health professionals who provide diagnostic, preventive, curative and rehabilitative health services. Among other tasks they can develop and implement treatment plans for injuries, illnesses and other physical and mental impairments; can administer therapeutic care and treatment to patients; can recommend environmental adaptations in the home, leisure, work and school environments on an individual or a group basis to enable individuals with functional limitations to perform their daily activities and occupations. |
| Offices of generalist medical practitioner (HP.3.1.1) |
comprise establishments of health professionals who hold the degree of a doctor of medicine or a corresponding qualification and are primarily engaged in the independent practice of general/family medicine. Although in some countries "general practice" and "family medicine" may be considered as medical specialisations, these occupations should always be classified here. Generalist medical practitioner solo practice refers to offices held by a single practitioner. Ambulatory group practice refers to centres of multiple general medical practitioners. |
| Offices of medical specialists (HP.3.1.2 and HP.3.1.3) |
(e.g. practices of independent psychiatrists, offices of psychotherapists, offices of cardiologists, ophthalmologists, ENT, paediatricians of specialised care, etc.) comprises establishment of health professionals holding a degree of doctor of medicine with a specialisation mental medicine, a corresponding qualification or a medical doctor with a specialisation other than general medicine (equivalent to ISCO-08 Code 2212). |
| Other ambulatory health care centres (HP.3.4) |
(e.g. family planning centers, free-standing ambulatory surgery centers, dialysis care centres) comprise establishments that are engaged in providing a wide range of outpatient services by a team of medical and paramedical staff, often along with support staff, that usually bring together several specialities. They differ from offices of medical specialists (HP.3.1.3) by their multi-specialisations, the complexity of the medical-technical equipment used and the range of types of health professionals involved. |
| Outpatient consultations/visits |
include consultations/visits at the physician's office, consultations/visits in the patient's home, consultations/visits in outpatient departments in hospital, but excludes telephone contacts, visits for prescribed laboratory tests, visits to perform prescribed and scheduled treatment procedures, e.g. injections, physiotherapy, etc. visits to dentists, visits to nurses. |
| Outpatient departments of hospitals (part of HP.1) |
(general hospitals providing out-patient, day care services) comprise licensed establishments that are primarily engaged in providing medical, diagnostic and treatment services that include physician, nursing and other health services that provide day care, outpatient and home health care services as secondary activities. |
| Paediatricians |
working in primary care are health professionals that deal comprehensively with the health and well-being of infants, children and adolescents in primary health care. |
| Paramedical practitioners (ISCO-08 2240) |
are health professionals who provide advisory, diagnostic, curative and preventive medical services more limited in scope and complexity than those carried out by medical doctors. They work autonomously, or with limited supervision of medical doctors, and apply advanced clinical procedures for treating and preventing diseases, injuries and other physical or mental impairments common to specific communities. Examples of occupations: feldsher, advanced care paramedic, clinical officer (paramedical), primary care paramedic. |
| Patient list |
refers to a list of records for each individual registered/assigned to/regularly seen by a provider. The list includes identification information, patient characteristics and may include information on current medical problems and on-going treatments. The list can exist in paper or electronic form. |
| Peer support groups |
are patient-driven groups on specific topics that encourage individuals to be in direct control of managing their conditions through group work and mutual support allowing them to draw on each other's experiences. |
| Pharmacies, retailers and other providers of medical goods (HP.5) |
refers to specialised establishments whose primary activity is the retail sale of pharmaceuticals and other medical goods to the general public for individual or household consumption or utilisation. Pharmaceuticals include both prescribed and non-prescribed medicines, either manufactured or prepared by onsite pharmacists. |
| Pharmacists (ISCO-08 2262) |
are health professionals who store, preserve, compound and dispense medicinal products and counsel on the proper use and adverse effects of drugs and medicines following prescriptions issued by medical doctors and other health professionals. This category includes dispensing pharmacists and retail pharmacists but is to the exclusion of pharmaceutical technician and assistant. |
| Physiotherapists (ISCO-08 2264) |
assess, plan and implement rehabilitative programmes that improve or restore human motor functions, maximize movement ability, relieve pain syndromes, and treat or prevent physical challenges associated with injuries, diseases and other impairments. |
| Post-natal care check |
is understood as visits for the care of the mother (not the infant). It includes visits by a primary care health professional either at home or in a facility. |
| Providers of ancillary services (HP.4) |
include establishments that provide specific ancillary type of services directly to outpatients under the supervision of health professionals and are not included within the episode of treatment by other providers. They include medical and diagnostic laboratories such as diagnostic imaging centres, medical x-ray laboratories, medical pathology laboratories, clinical laboratories. |
| Providers of preventive care (HP.6) |
comprise organisations that primarily provide collective preventing programmes and campaigns/public health programmes for specific groups of individuals or the population-at-large, such as health promotion and protection agencies or public health institutes as well as specialised establishments providing primary preventive care as their principal activity. |
| Providers of home health care services (HP.3.5) |
comprise establishments that are primarily engaged in providing skilled nursing services in patients' homes, along with a range of the following: personal care services: medical social services, support in medications, use of medical equipment and supplies, counselling; 24-hour home care; occupational and vocational therapy; dietary and nutritional services; speech therapy; audiology; and high-tech care, such as intravenous therapy. |
| Public health professionals (ISCO-08 2212) |
are specialists working to improve the public health deficits by providing health surveillance through promoting the development of indicator-based comprehensive health monitoring systems; promoting health behaviour and lifestyles, and reducing risk factors; working to help reduce inequity in health; helping to decision-making in health care among different players. |
| Rapid tuberculosis diagnosis (using GeneXpert MTB/RIF assay test) |
refers to the use of the WHO recommended rapid test (GeneXpert MTB/ RIF assay) in countries most affected by tuberculosis. The test provides an accurate diagnosis for many patients in about 100 minutes, compared to previous tests which were required up to three months to receive results. More information regarding the test, frequently-asked questions and fact sheet can be found on the WHO tuberculosis programme's web page: http://www.who.int/tb/features_archive/new_rapid_test/en/. |
| Referral guidelines |
intend to map out the linkages across the different levels of the health system to ensure that health needs are addressed irrespective of the health system level at which care was first sought. It facilitates forward and backwards management of cases across different levels of care. |
| Reply letter |
is part of the referral form and can be a stand alone document or included on one form with the referral letter. It is filled out by the treating facility and contains information on special investigations, findings, diagnosis and treatment. |
| Residential long-term care facilities (HP.2), also known as high dependency care facilities |
are establishments primarily engaged in providing inpatient nursing and rehabilitative services to individuals requiring nursing care. |
| Self-management or self-care |
is defined as the knowledge, skills and confidence to manage one's own health, to care for a specific condition or to recover from an episode of ill health. |
| Settings of care |
describe the varied types of arrangements for services delivery, organized further into different facilities, institutions and organizations that provide care. Settings include ambulatory, community, home, in-patient and residential services, whereas facilities refer to infrastructure, such as clinics, health centres, district hospitals, dispensaries, or other entities, for examples, mobile clinics and pharmacies. |
| Social workers (part of ISCO-08 2635) |
provide advice and guidance to individuals, families, groups, communities and organizations in response to social and personal difficulties. They assist clients to develop skills and access resources and support services needed to respond to various issues arising from unemployment, poverty, disability, addiction, etc. |
| Specialist medical practitioners |
are physicians who diagnose, treat and prevent disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments using specialized testing, diagnostic, medical, surgical, physical and psychiatric techniques, through application of the principles and procedures of modern medicine. They plan, supervise and evaluate the implementation of care and treatment plans by other health-care providers. They specialize in certain disease categories, types of patient or methods of treatment, and may conduct medical education and research activities in their chosen areas of specialization. This includes specialist medical doctors, specialist doctor, etc. |
| Speech therapist (part of ISCO-08 2266) |
is a health professional who evaluates, manages and treats physical disorders affecting human speech, communication and swallowing. They prescribe corrective devices or rehabilitative therapies for speech disorders and related sensory and neural problems, and provide counselling on communication performance. This category includes language therapists, speech pathologists, speech therapists, etc. |
| Total risk approach |
identifies individuals for prevention, treatment and referral based on a combined risk evaluation that includes age, sex, blood pressure, smoking status, total blood cholesterol and presence or absence of diabetes mellitus. This approach is considered more effective and less costly than informing treatment decisions based on a single factor, such as high arterial blood pressure or high serum cholesterol. |
| WHO/ISH cardiovascular risk prediction charts |
indicate 10-year risk of a fata or not fatal major cardiovascular event taking into consideration age, sex, blood pressure, smoking status, total blood cholesterol and presence or absence of diabetes mellitus. There are specific charts for 14 WHO epidemiological subregions. A separate set of charts are available for settings where blood cholesterol cannot be measured. These can be further calibrated at country-level. Detailed information can be found at: http://www.who.int/cardiovascular_diseases/guidelines/Chart_predictions/en/. |