Aged Care Abbreviations Alphabetical
A
Abbreviation
Title
A
Abdo
Absent
Abdomen
ADLs
ACT
ASAP
Aust.
A
Abdo
Activities of Daily Living
Australian Capital Territory
As Soon As Possible
Australia
Absent
Abdomen
ADLs
ABI
Activities of Daily Living
Acquired Brain Injury
AF
AAA
Atrial Fibrillation
Alzheimer's Association
Australia
Australian Association of
Gerontology
Aboriginal Advocacy Program
Australian Bureau of
Statistics
Aged Care Association
Australia
Aged & Community Services
Australia
Aged Care Client Record
Australian Council for the
Rehabilitation of the Disabled
Aged Care Standards &
Accreditation Agency
Aged & Community Services
WA Inc
Australian Healthcare
Association
Australian Institute of Health
& Welfare
Australian Meals on Wheels
Association
Australian Nursing Federation
Alliance for the Prevention of
Elder Abuse
Australian Pensioners &
Superannuants Federation
Aged Rights and Advocacy
Service
Aged Care Funding
Instrument
Aged Care Approvals Round
AAG
AAP
ABS
ACAA
ACSA
ACCR
ACROD
ACSAA
ACSWA
AHA
AIHW
AMOW
ANF
APEA
APSF
ARAS
ACFI
ACAR
Meaning
Not there/ away
The body part in between the thorax and pelvis (also called
the ‘Belly’)
Activities such as feeding, showering, toileting
Territory in Australia
As quickly as you can
Country
Not there/ away
The body part in between the thorax and pelvis (also called
the ‘Belly’)
Activities such as feeding, showering, toileting
Brain damage caused from events after birth, such as a
severe trauma
Cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heart rhythm)
Community group offering support, counseling and
information on Alzheimer’s
Australia’s largest multidisciplinary professional association
of people who work in, or have an interest in ageing
Program run by Advocare with Aboriginal perspective
Australian government department compiling statistics on
the nation
Concise record of clients details
Body responsible for accrediting and monitoring residential
aged care homes
Group of government and non-government representatives
working on elder abuse in WA
Advocacy agency for older people in South Australia
A funding tool used as a means to provide funding to aged
care providers
The process of attributing aged care packages to service
empowering people
ACAT
Aged Care Assessment
Team
Assistant in nursing
AIN
ARF
ARIA
Additional Recurrent Funding
Accessibility/Remoteness
Index of Australia
providers
Government funded team to assess the eligibility of older
people for federally funded high care services
Health professional to assist with the day-to-day activities
and care of a resident
Continuing increase in funding to be paid to an organisation
standard classification and index of remoteness
B
Abbreviation
Title
BGL
BNO
BO
BP
Blood Glucose Level
Bowels Not Open
Bowels Open
Blood Pressure
BSL
BTB
Blood Sugar Level
Back To Bed
Meaning
Concentration of glucose present in the bloodstream
Patient has not passed a bowel movement
Patient has passed a bowel movement
The pressure exerted by the blood against the walls of the
blood vessels
The concentration of the sugar levels in the bloodstream
Returned to the bed
C
Abbreviation
CACP
CAP
Title
Community Aged Care
Packages
Culturally & Linguistically
Diverse
Care Awaiting Placement
CENA
CER
Carer Needs Assessment
Charge Exempt Resident
CSTDA
Commonwealth State &
Territory Disability Agreement
Capital Transition Payment
CALD
CTP
CAA
CCAC
CCIC
CFA
CIS
COTA
CCRC
CRS
CSHISC
Carers Association of
Australia
Community Care Advisory
Committee
Community Care Industry
Council
Continence Foundation of
Australia
Complaints Investigation
Scheme
Council on the Ageing
Commonwealth Respite &
Carelink Centres
Commonwealth Rehabilitation
Service
Community Services & Health
Industry Skills Council
Meaning
Federally funded packaged care for clients with intermediate
needs
From a non-English, non-Australian background and culture
Temporary residential care solution, until permanent
vacancies arise in other facilities
Measure of the needs of a person in a caring role
Resident of a residential aged care facility who is exempt
from paying fees
National framework for the delivery, funding and
development of disability services
Taper payment supporting the transition from Australian
Government grant support to user contributions
Agency that investigates residential aged care complaints
Agency assisting people to access aged care and respite
services
empowering people
CVA
C/o or C/-
Cerebral Vascular Accident
(Stroke)
Complaining of
Rapidly declining loss of brain function from a clot in the
brains vessels.
Patient is waging a complaint/ written before subjective
observations (e.g. Patient c/o stomach ache)
Title
Department for Communities
Meaning
Government department looking after the community
services
Government department managing health services in
Western Australia
D
Abbreviation
DfC
DoHA
DM
Department of Health &
Ageing
Day Therapy Centres
Department of Veterans’
Affairs
Domestic Violence Advocacy
Service
Diabetes Mellitus
DON
DOB
Director of Nursing
Date of Birth
DTC
DVA
DVAS
Metabolic disease whereby a persons blood sugar levels are
out of balance
Nurse in charge of the ward/ facility
Birth date
E
Abbreviation
EACH
ERA
Eg.
Title
Extended Aged Care at
Home Packages
Extended Aged Care at
Home - Dementia Packages
Elder Rights Advocacy
For example
Etc
Etcetera
Meaning
Federally funded aged care packages for high care clients
living in the community
Federally funded aged care packages for high care clients
living in the community with Dementia
Advocacy service for older people living in Victoria
Written before providing an example of what you are
discussing
And so on…
Title
Glasgow Coma Scale
General Practitioner
Meaning
Measurement of consciousness
Doctor
Abbreviation
HACC
Title
Home & Community Care
HaDSCO
Health and Disability Services
Complaints Office
Hormone Replacement
Therapy
Has Not Passed Urine
Has Passed Urine
Height
Meaning
Government funded service providing assistance to low care
clients living in the community
Department that manages complaints about hospitals,
disability services and government health service providers
Chemical rebalancing of hormones (often during
menopause)
Patient has yet to urinate
Patient urinated
The measurement of how tall a person is
EACH-D
F
G
Abbreviation
GCS
GP
H
HRT
HNPU
HPU
Ht
empowering people
I
Abbreviation
ICF
ICU
ICU
Title
Incontinent of Faeces
Incontinent of Urine
Intensive Care Unit
Meaning
Patient has had a bowel movement, away from the toilet
Patient has passed urine away from the toilet
High dependency unit in hospital emergency department
IDC
ILC
Indwelling Catheter
Independent Living Centre
ILU
Independent Living Units
Catheter that stays inside the patient
A non-profit community service organisation which provides
impartial, expert advice on equipment, building and design,
access and resources for people with disabilities
Units in which an older or disabled person can live
independently with assistance as required
IFA
International Federation of
Ageing
International Network for the
Prevention of Elder Abuse
Industrial Relations
Commission
Industry Skills Council
INPEA
IRC
ISC
Commission that addresses industrial relations matters
Independent, not-for-profit company that develops and
maintains training packages
J
K
L
Abbreviation
Title
Left
Level of consciousness
Meaning
Direction, to the left
Measurement of a persons mental state and state of
awareness
MOW
Title
Motorcycle Accident
Minimum Data Set
Myocardial Infarction (Heart
Attack)
Meals on Wheels
MSU
Mid Stream Urine
MVA
Motor Vehicle Accident
Meaning
Motorbike crash/ Accident
The minimum amount of information required from a client
Interruption of blood supply to the heart causing parts of the
heart to die
Service delivering meals to sick and disabled people across
Australia.
Urine caught in the middle of the stream, starting to catch
just after beginning, and removing container before the end
of stream
Car crash/ Accident
L
LOC
M
Abbreviation
MCA
MDS
MI
N
Abbreviation
N/A
NT
NACAP
NESB
Title
Not Applicable or Not
Appropriate
Northern Territory
National Aged Care
Advocacy Program
Non-English Speaking
Background
Meaning
Does not apply to this case
Australian territory in the north of Australia
Funding for advocacy in residential aged care and federally
funded aged care packages in the community
People who have previously been unable to speak English
empowering people
NFP
Not For Profit
NGO
NPP
Non-government organisation
National Privacy Principles
NACA
National Aged Care Alliance
NCCAC
NRHA
National Community Care
Advisory Committee
Nursing and Midwifery Board
of Western Australia
National Rural Health Alliance
NSA
National Seniors Association
NA D
N/C
No Abnormalities Detected
No complaints
NBM
NCP
Neg or -ve
Nil by Mouth
Nursing Care Plan
Negative
NOI
NOK
No Obvious Injuries
Next of Kin
NMBWA
An organization whose profits are reinvested into the people
they support, no shareholders.
An organization that is not a part of the government
Base line privacy standards which some private sector
organisations need to comply with
The National Aged Care Alliance is a representative body of
peak national organisations in aged care
A forum to discuss and address community care issues
Registration and information service for existing and
prospective nurses in WA
National body working to improve the health of Australians
living in rural and remote areas
National Seniors Australia is the largest not-for-profit
organisation representing the over 50s to all levels of
government
All observations revealed no issues or causes for concern
Patient has no subjective observations of pain/ discomfort to
report
Patient cannot have any food, drinks or substance orally.
Plan for patients care
(Medical) Not indicating the presence of a particular
organism, disease or abnormality
No injuries are present upon initial examination
The person to be contacted in an emergency, the closest
relation to the patient
O
Abbreviation
OHS
Title
Occupational Safety & Health
OT
Occupational Therapy
OPA
Office of Public Advocate
OPRS
Older Peoples Rights Service
Obs
Observations
O/N
OT
Overnight
Occupational Therapy
Meaning
Cross-disciplinary area concerned with protecting the safety,
health and welfare of people engaged in work
Allied health service providing creative and therapeutic
responses to assist patients to rehabilitate
Government agency providing guardianship to people
without legal decision making capacity
Free legal service for older people at risk of, or experiencing
elder abuse
Series of observatory measurements taken to assess
patients wellbeing (Temperature, Pulse, Respirations
etcetera)
Until the morning
Productive creativity in the treatment of illnesses, ailments
and injuries.
P
Abbreviation
Title
PA
PAC
Per anal
Pressure Area Care
PATS
Patient Assistance Travel
Scheme
Public Benevolent Institution
PBI
Meaning
Given in a suppository form rectally
Treatment applied to a pressure area (injury sustained from
prolonged pressure to the area)
A subsidy funded by Royalties for Regions to provide travel
expenses for frail/ disabled people
Non-profit institution organised for the direct relief of poverty,
empowering people
PCA
Personal Care Assistant
PSA
Personal Support Assistant
PT
Public Trustees
PEG
P/H
Percutaneous Endoscopic
Gastrostomy
Past History
PO
POS or +ve
Per oral
positive
PUB
PUT
Passed Urine in Bed
Passed Urine in Toilet
sickness, suffering, distress, misfortune or disability
Health professional to assist with the day-to-day activities
and care of a resident
Health professional to assist with the day-to-day activities
and care of a resident
Government department providing power of attorney for
people without decision making capacity
Tube in patients abdomen allowing feeding directly to the
stomach
Documentation of patients previous social, physical, mental
and health history.
Given orally (in the mouth)
(medical) Presence of an organism, illness or disease in
sample collected
Patient has been incontinent of urine in bed
Patient urinated in the toilet
Title
Queensland Aged and
Disability Advocacy
Queensland
Meaning
Advocacy agency for aged and disabled people in
Queensland
State in Australia
Abbreviation
RCS
Title
Resident Classification Scale
RSL
R
RIB
RN
Returned Services League of
Australia
Retirement Village
Association
Retirement Village Residents
Association
Right
Rest in Bed
Registered Nurse
Meaning
The basic tool for funding aged care based on acuity of
residents
Support organization for men and women who have served,
or are serving in the armed forces
Australia’s peak body for the retirement industry
R/O
ROB
ROTD
Removal of
Rest on Bed
Resident of the Day
RoM
Range of Movement
Q
Abbreviation
QADA
QLD
R
RVA
RVRA
Representative group for all people living in retirement
villages
Direction, to the right
Patient needs to stay in bed, and avoid getting up
Nurse who has been registered by the Nursing and
Midwifery Board of WA
Taking away
Patient needs to rest in bed and avoid getting up
A resident assigned to a particular worker or in need of a
particular treatment
The ability of the patient to move a limb in different
directions and patterns
S
Abbreviation
SA
SAAP
S/B
SoB
SOOB
Title
South Australia
Supported Accommodation
Assistance Program
Seen By
Shortness of Breath
Sit Out Of Bed
Meaning
State in Australia
Assistance to people who are homeless or at risk of
homelessness
Observed by
Client struggling to breathe, short raspy breaths
Patient needs to spend time out of bed in a sitting position
empowering people
SW
Social Worker
Allied health professional to assist with social and
environmental factors to aide rehabilitation
Title
Temperature
Tasmania
Tasmania Advocacy Rights
Service
Transitional Care Placement
Meaning
The degree of heat in the patients body
State of Australia
Advocacy agency for aged and disabled people in Tasmania
T
Abbreviation
T or Temp.
TAS
TARS
TCP
TIS
Translator and Interpreter
Service
Time of Report
Temperature, Pulse,
Respiration
TOR
TPR
Residency for a short period until a permanent aged care
place arises
Providing interpreters and translators for non-English
speaking clients
The time that a file/ case note was recorded
Measurement of patients temperature, pulse and respiration
rates
U
Abbreviation
UA
Urinalysis
Title
Meaning
Test to search for anomalies in patients urine
Title
Veterans’ Aged Care
Veterans' Home Care
Victoria
Meaning
Aged Care services for veterans
Home and community aged care for veterans
State in Australia
Title
Western Australia
Western Australian Network
for the Prevention of Elder
Abuse
Wheel chair
Weight
Meaning
State on the west side of Australia
V
Abbreviation
VAC
VHC
VIC
W
Abbreviation
WA
WANPEA
W/C
Wt
Chair mounted on wheels
Measurement of the heaviness of a patient
X
Abbreviation
XR
Title
X-ray
Meaning
Electromagnetic radiation that can penetrate solid form to
reveal images of the inside.
Y
Z
empowering people