Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

A not-for-profit organization based in Switzerland, which in 1995 developed a Code of Conduct to guide the reader of health care information available on the Internet. The set of rules allows the reader to know the source and the purpose of the data being read. An organization of Web sites that agree to follow a…

Application of information technology to the collection, storage, processing, retrieval, and communication of information relevant to patient care within a health care system.  

A technician who ensures the accuracy, completeness, coding, security, storage, and retrieval of health care-related data, especially in medical records. The work may involve various aspects of health care (e.g., epidemiology, ethics, law, management, patient care, and research).  

A limited but measurable element of the health of a community that is used to gauge public health as a whole.  

A standardized coding system used to process claims for insurance payments by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It consists of two parts: a coding system devised by the American Medical Association called the Current Procedural Terminology, which describes procedures and services provided by health care professionals; and a system that identifies health-related products…

A synonym, preferred in some health care communications, for nosocomial pneumonia. It includes both ventilator-associated pneumonias and other lower respiratory tract infections that are contracted during a stay in a hospital or health care facility.  

A legal document that allows individuals to name someone they know and trust to make health care decisions for them if, for any reason and at any time, the individual becomes unable to make or communicate those decisions. Some states limit the age at which such a proxy may be established and prohibit certain persons,…