Category: A

A nonprofit organization that provides accreditation for clinical training programs (usually residencies) in United States medical centers, upon submission of reports from Residency Review Committees.  

A nonprofit organization that provides a method for accreditation of continuing medical education (CME) programs.  

Amounts on open account owed to creditors for goods and services.  

The time, usually a month, a quarter, or a year, covered by a financial statement.  

A tort where the wrongdoing consists of using the legal system for an improper purpose. For example, initiating involuntary commitment proceedings to hospitalize a person to stop him from doing some thing (such as leaving town), rather than because he legitimately needs treatment, is abuse of process. Unlike a lawsuit for malicious prosecution, a plaintiff…

A publication that contains comprehensive summaries of clinical practice guidelines, issued ten times a year by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). Each issue contains summaries of guidelines and reviews derived from empirical research or professional consensus; complete bibliographic citations and availability information; expert commentaries on guidelines; and a Forum section.  

The process of extracting information from a document in order to create a summary, called an abstract, of that document. The process of abstracting should not introduce the abstracter’s judgment, that is, the resulting abstract must carry exactly the same information as in the original document for those items which have been extracted.  

A shortened form of a word or phrase. An abbreviation may be formed by the first letter (a. for acre), part of a word (inc. for incorporation), or the first and last letters of the word (ft. for feet or foot).  

A posteroanterior X-ray film to show the maxillae, maxillary sinuses, and zygomatic bones.  

A collection of nerve cells in the medulla oblongata that receives information from sensory receptors in the circulatory system and brings about reflex changes in the rate of the heart beat and in the diameter of blood vessels, so that the blood pressure can be adjusted. The vasomotor center also receives impulses from elsewhere in…