Acute care
Acute care is the treatment of patients with short-term but serious conditions.
Ongoing improvement plans and changes at a national, regional, and local level, have meant different parts of the system are sometimes using the same words or abbreviations to refer to quite different things.
In response, the SPF has produced this simple to use jargon buster. It is intended for people who already have a good working knowledge of the system, but who might want to understand the new terminology, or system improvement plans. The guide does not set out to answer questions about specific changes that might affect certain organisations, staff, or groups of staff and their representatives.
Read more about system changes in our overview of planned changes page.
Acute care is the treatment of patients with short-term but serious conditions.
ALBs regulate the system, establish national standards, protect patients and the public, and provide central services to the NHS.
If you have any suggestions of further terminology we should add to the jargon buster, please contact us.