Written by: Vanessa Hart, OT Reg. (Ont.) (she/her/hers)
AX completed by MRP, and RN. 28M meets the DSM DX criteria for AFRID, and OCD. Client has HX of MDD, and has completed outpatient CBT and CPT in the past. ECG was normal. TX plan is for client to complete DBT groups, as well as meet with OT for RTW intervention. SW will support for D/C planning including navigation of NEDIC resources, and to schedule appointment with GP.
Was reading that paragraph difficult? It is for most people. Professionals that are involved with eating disorder treatment, from therapists to doctors, often communicate in what seems like an alien language. Acronyms or short forms are used to more easily and quickly communicate ideas. Unfortunately, for those who do not have much experience within the medical world, these short forms are confusing and can make information difficult to understand.
For this reason, I (Vanessa, an Occupational Therapist working in an inpatient eating disorder rehabilitation program) have created a handy list of common acronyms that are found in eating disorder related treatment information and professional notes. We hope that this helps to make more sense of the alien language that surrounds you!
P.S. Send us an e-mail if you think we missed something 🙂
ACT: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
AN: Anorexia nervosa
ADD: Attention Deficit Disorder
ADHD: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
ARFID: Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorder
AX: Assessment
BDD: Body Dysmorphic Disorder
BED: Binge Eating Disorder
BMI: Body Mass Index
BMR: Base Metabolic Rate
BN: Bulimia Nervosa
BPD: Borderline Personality Disorder
CBT-E: Enhanced Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (for eating disorders)
CPF-E – Compassion focused therapy for eating disorders
CPT: Cognitive Processing Therapy
CHSP: Chewing and spitting
DBT: Dialectical Behavior Therapy
DOC: Drug of choice
DSM: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders
DX: Diagnosis
D/C: Discharge
ECG: Electrocardiogram
ECT: Electroconvulsive Therapy
ED: Eating Disorder
EDNOS: Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified
ERP: Exposure and response prevention therapy
FBT: Family-based Therapy
GAD: Generalized Anxiety Disorder
GP: General Practitioner (Family Doctor)
HX: History
IOP: Intensive outpatient program
IP: In-patient
IT: Interpersonal Therapy
Inpatient: Treatment within a hospital or residential setting
MDD: Major depressive disorder (depression)
MET: Motivational Enhancement Therapy
MI: Motivational Interviewing
MP/MRP: Most responsible physician
MSE: Mental Status Exam
NEDIC: National eating disorder information center
NG: Nasogastric Feeding
NP: Nurse Practitioner
OCD: Obsessive-compulsive Disorder
OP: Out-patient
OT: Occupational Therapist
OTC: Over the counter (medication)
OSFED: Other specified feeding and eating disorders
Outpatient: Treatment outside of the hospital
PHP: Physician health program
PRN: As needed (often in reference to medication)
PT: Physical Therapist or patient (pt.)
PTSD: Post-traumatic stress disorder
RD: Registered Dietician
RP: Registered Psychotherapist
RT: Recreation therapist
RTW: Return to work
RTS: Return to school
RN: Registered Nurse
SI: Suicidal ideation and/or self-injury
SH: Self harm
SIB: Self Injurious Behavior
SW: Social Worker
TIB: Therapy interfering behavior
TW: Trigger warning
TX: Treatment
UFED: Unspecified feeding or eating disorder
Try reading the paragraph from the beginning of the article again. Does it make more sense? Learning the language of the health care system takes time. I am hoping that this reference guide can be a helpful start. Please comment below if we missed anything! Thanks for reading.
