Clinical Officers Council Pre-Internship key terms

A life-threatening state in which the circulation fails to deliver enough oxygen and nutrients to body tissues, causing low blood pressure, fast pulse, cold clammy skin, confusion and reduced urine output.

A metabolic emergency of diabetes with high blood glucose, ketones in blood or urine, acidosis and dehydration, presenting with vomiting, abdominal pain, thirst and deep rapid breathing; treated with insulin, fluids and potassium.

A kidney disorder producing heavy protein loss in urine, low blood albumin, generalised oedema and raised cholesterol, usually caused by glomerular damage; managed with salt restriction, diuretics and steroids in some cases.

Sudden severe abdominal pain, often with tenderness, guarding or rigidity, that suggests a condition requiring urgent surgical assessment, such as appendicitis, perforation, obstruction or bleeding.

A surgical operation opening the abdomen to inspect and treat disease inside; used for trauma, perforation, obstruction, bleeding or an unexplained acute abdomen.

A hernia whose contents become trapped and lose their blood supply, causing severe pain, tenderness, vomiting and obstruction; it is a surgical emergency requiring immediate operation.

A pregnancy disorder, usually after 20 weeks, marked by new high blood pressure with protein in urine or damage to organs such as kidneys, liver or brain; it can progress to seizures and needs urgent care.

Excessive bleeding after childbirth, commonly defined as more than 500 mL after vaginal birth or 1000 mL after caesarean; a leading cause of maternal death, treated with uterine massage, drugs and fluids.

Vaginal bleeding from the genital tract after 24 weeks of pregnancy and before birth; causes include placenta praevia and placental abruption, and it needs urgent hospital assessment.

Yellow discolouration of a newborn's skin and eyes caused by raised bilirubin; common in the first week, but early, severe or prolonged jaundice needs investigation to prevent brain injury.

A seizure in a child aged about 6 months to 5 years, triggered by fever without brain infection; most are brief and do not mean the child has epilepsy.

A child nutrition emergency with severe wasting, nutritional oedema or very low weight-for-height; children need careful feeding, treatment of infection and monitoring for hypoglycaemia and heart failure.

Indirect protection of people who are not immune when a large proportion of a community is immune, so that infection spreads poorly; the needed proportion rises with how contagious the disease is.

The system of keeping vaccines within recommended temperature ranges from manufacture to use; breaks in the chain reduce vaccine potency and can cause failure of immunisation.

The number of maternal deaths during pregnancy, childbirth or within 42 days of its end per 100,000 live births in a period; it reflects the quality of obstetric care.

Raised pressure within a closed muscle compartment that reduces blood flow, causing severe pain, pain on stretching the muscles and later loss of pulse; it needs urgent fasciotomy to save the limb.

A broken bone with a wound that connects the fracture to the outside skin; risk of infection is high, so it needs antibiotics, wound cleaning, tetanus cover and early fixation.

A pulling force applied to a limb using weights, ropes and pulleys to realign a fracture, relieve muscle spasm or rest a joint; the pull and alignment need regular checking.

An acute, fluctuating disturbance of attention and awareness, often caused by infection, medicines, pain or metabolic upset; it is a medical emergency and is not the same as dementia.

A state in which a person loses contact with reality, experiencing hallucinations or false beliefs called delusions; causes include schizophrenia, mania, substances and medical illness.

Bleeding from the nose, commonly from small vessels in Little's area; most cases stop with pressure, but heavy or repeated bleeding may need packing and investigation.

A sight-threatening emergency with sudden severe eye pain, red eye, blurred vision, halos around lights, headache and vomiting; the pupil is fixed and mid-dilated and pressure is high.

Persistent discharge from the ear through a perforated eardrum for weeks or more, often with hearing loss; it can lead to serious complications if not treated.

A spreading bacterial infection of the deeper skin and underlying fat, producing warmth, redness, swelling, pain and sometimes fever; it requires antibiotic treatment and marking the edge to monitor spread.

A method of starting general anaesthesia quickly in a patient at risk of aspiration, using a fast-acting induction drug, a muscle relaxant and immediate placement of a breathing tube.

The process of sorting patients by urgency so that limited staff and equipment go first to those who are most seriously ill or likely to deteriorate soon.

A score from 3 to 15 based on eye opening, verbal response and motor response, used to grade level of consciousness and monitor change after head injury or serious illness.

A patient's voluntary agreement to treatment after receiving and understanding information about the diagnosis, procedure, risks, benefits and alternatives; needed before most interventions except life-saving emergencies.

The professional duty to keep a patient's health information private and share it only with people involved in care or when the law or serious public danger justifies disclosure.

A claim that a health worker's care fell below a reasonable standard and directly caused harm; it must show a duty of care, a breach, causation and actual damage.

Services to prevent HIV passing from mother to child, including HIV testing in pregnancy, antiretroviral treatment, safe delivery practices and infant prophylaxis or feeding support.

The amount of HIV genetic material in a blood sample, used to monitor how well antiretroviral treatment is working; a rising load suggests treatment failure or poor adherence.

Antiretroviral medicines taken soon after a possible HIV exposure to prevent infection; they should be started within 72 hours and continued for 28 days.

Methods used after unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy, such as a copper intrauterine device or hormonal pills; they work mainly by delaying ovulation and are more effective the sooner they are used.