Category: S

The banding together of several small employers in order to compete in purchasing power with large employers.  

Definition depends on the context in which the term is used, typically a particular statute or regulation. Generally, small employers are those that employ less than 50 people, although at least one recent health reform proposal put the limit at 100 employees. The distinction is important since the designation of “small employer” may exempt a…

Spoken words which injure the reputation of another; oral defamation. Written defamation is called “libel.” Defaming the character of another through injurious speech. To qualify legally for slander, speech must intentionally impugn the reputation of another and be both malicious and demonstrably false.  

A term which, in hospital usage, usually means to select patients who will be financially profitable (for example, because they have an illness for which the prospective payment system (PPS) favors the hospital, or because they have insurance and are not charity patients).  

A portion of a hospital devoted to providing skilled nursing care, rather than acute care. To qualify as an SNU, the unit must have an organized professional staff including medical and nursing professionals, and meet the other social and health needs of patients who do not require acute hospital care, but who do need professional…

One of the two strands of deoxyribunucleic acid (DNA) which form the double helix carrying genetic information.  

A computer-enhanced x-ray technique in which patients are injected with a drug which emits a small amount of radiation. The chemical settles in tissues in direct proportion to the amount of blood flow in the area. Scanning which is coupled with a computer produces images which are useful in diagnosing various conditions. It has been…

A hereditary disorder caused by a single gene. Examples are Huntington’s disease, Tay-Sachs disease, and sickle cell anemia.  

A tax on products or activities which are allegedly harmful; for example, alchohol and cigarettes.  

Discharging the patient; the act of the attending physician which records his permission for the patient to leave the hospital. By this act, the physician in effect states that, in his opinion, the patient does not require further care in the institution.