Hospice abbreviations and acronyms are essential for understanding how hospice care works. The following list provides key words and phrases used in the field of hospice:
ACF: Acute Care Facility (traditional hospital)
ADL: Activities of Daily Living
BC: Bereavement Coordinator
Bereavement Services: These are services designed to provide emotional and psychological support to the patient’s family and friends after the patient has died.
BMI: Body Mass Index
CC: Continuous Care/Crisis Care
CMS: Centers for Medicare/Medicaid Services
CNA: Certified Nursing Assistant. A CNA is a professional who assists with patient care in a number of ways, including taking vital signs, providing bedside care and helping with meals.
CTI: Certification of Terminal Illness
DME: Durable Medical Equipment
DNR: Do Not Resuscitate. This is a directive that indicates that patient does not want to be revived if their heart or breathing stops.
EOB: Election of Benefits
EOL: End of Life. This is the time when a patient’s death is imminent and they enter into their final phase of life.
F2F: Face to Face
FAST: Functional Assessment Staging Tool (for Dementia)
GIP: General Inpatient Care. This is a level of hospice care for patients who require a higher level of medically intensive care due to symptoms that cannot be managed in other settings.
HMD: Hospice Medical Director
Hospice Nurse: A hospice nurse specializes in end-of-life nursing care for terminally ill patients and their families.
IDG/IDT: Interdisciplinary Group/Team. An interdisciplinary team is made up of professionals from different disciplines who work together to provide comprehensive care for the patient. The team includes physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains and other hospice staff.
IV: Intravenous. This refers to medications or fluids that are administered directly into the bloodstream through a vein in the arm or hand.
KPS: Karnofsky Performance Scale
LCD: Local Coverage Determination
LOC: Level of Care
LTAC: Long-term Acute Care Facility
MAC: Mid Arm Circumference
MSW: Medical Social Worker (Masters Level SW)
NP: Nurse Practitioner
OT: Occupational Therapy
Palliative Care: Palliative care focuses on symptom relief and comfort to improve quality of life for a person who has an advanced, incurable or terminal illness.
PBM: Pharmacy Benefit Manager
PCP: Primary Care Physician. A primary care physician manages a patient’s overall health and refers them to specialists as needed.
POA: Power of Attorney. This legal document allows an individual to designate another person (the agent) to manage their financial affairs if they become incapacitated or unable to do so.
POC: Plan of Care
PPS: Palliative Performance Scale
PT: Physical therapy
QA: Quality Assurance
QAPI: Quality Assurance Performance Improvement
Respite Care: This is short-term inpatient care that provides relief to the patient’s primary caregivers.
Routine Home Care (RHC): This is the most common type of hospice care provided and includes services such as hospice nurse visits, social worker visits, home health aides and other support services.
SC: Spiritual Counselor/Chaplain
SN: Skilled Nursing
SNF: Skilled Nursing Facility
SOC: Start of Care
ST: Speech Therapy
SW: Social Worker. A social worker provides support to the patient and their family in terms of emotional, psychological and practical issues related to end-of-life care.
VC: Volunteer Coordinator
VOL: Volunteer
By understanding these common hospice abbreviations and acronyms, it will be easier to have conversations with your healthcare provider about the different levels of hospice care available and the best option for your particular situation. It can also help you better understand what services will be provided during the course of your loved one’s treatment.