Annual Report - Acronyms and Glossary

ACRONYMS

Acronym	Full Meaning
AIDS	Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
APEC	Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
APY	Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
AR-DRG	Australian Refined Diagnosis Related Group
AusAID	Australian Agency for International Development
AUSFTA	Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement
COAG	Council of Australian Governments
HECS	Higher Education Contribution Scheme
HIV	Human Immunodeficiency Virus
OECD	Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
WHO	World Health Organization

GLOSSARY

Acute Care	Short-term medical treatment, usually in a hospital, for patients with an acute illness or injury, or recovering from surgery. Acute illness/injury is one that is severe in its effect or approaching crisis point, e.g. acute appendicitis.
Allied Health Care	A group of medically-prescribed health care services, such as occupational therapy, speech pathology and physical therapy, provided by licensed professionals.
Antiviral	Destroying or inhibiting the growth and reproduction of viruses.
Brachytherapy	Radiotherapy in which the source of irradiation is placed close to the surface of the body or within a body cavity.
Cardiac Resynchronisation	Therapy which delivers electrical impulses to both sides of the heart to co-ordinate the contractions of the heart’s ventricles and improve its efficiency to increase blood flow to the body.
Chronic Otitis Media	A variety of signs, symptoms and physical findings that result from the long-term damage to the middle ear by infection and inflammation.
Comorbidity	Describes the effect of all other diseases an individual patient might have other than the primary disease of interest.
Competitive Tendering and Contracting	The process of contracting out the delivery of government activities previously performed by a Commonwealth agency to another organisation. The activity is submitted to competitive tender, and the preferred provider of the activity is selected from the range of bidders by evaluating offers against predetermined selection criteria.
Cost Recovery	The recovery of all the costs associated with a program or service, usually through the application of fees.
Dementia	The loss of mental processing ability, including communication, abstract thinking, judgment and physical abilities, such that it interferes with daily living; for example, short-term memory loss.
Embolisation	The process by which or state in which a blood vessel or organ is obstructed by the lodgment of a material mass
Generic	When referring to a drug, ‘generic’ means not covered by a trademark; where a drug is marketed under its chemical name without advertising.
Herceptin®	A drug used in the late stages of breast cancer.
Islet Cell Transplantation	In islet cell transplantation, insulin-producing beta cells (islets) are taken from a donor’s pancreas and transferred into a person with diabetes. Once transplanted, the donor islets begin to make and release insulin, actively regulating the level of glucose in the blood. Currently pancreatic islet cell transplantation is the only known cure for type 1 diabetes.
Kava	A drug made from the ground roots of the plant Piper methysticum (a member of the pepper family that also includes the black pepper). Kava is consumed as a drink or supplement. The crushed, ground or powdered root is added to water and drunk like tea.
Opal Fuel	A low-aromatic petrol developed to combat the rising use of petrol as an inhalant in remote Indigenous Australian communities.
Outcomes	The results, impacts or consequences of actions by the Government on the Australian community.
Outputs	The goods or services produced by agencies on behalf of the Government for external organisations or individuals.
Palliative Care	To reduce the severe effects of illness or injury.
Papillomavirus	A DNA-based virus that infects the skin and mucous membranes of humans and a variety of animals.
Pathogenic	Capable of causing disease.
Pathology Services	The study and diagnosis of disease through the examination of organs, tissues, cells and bodily fluids. Pathology services provide a range of important diagnostic support services to help hospital staff and general practitioners diagnose and treat diseases and other medical conditions.
Performance Indictators	Measures that provide information on administered items and outputs in terms of quality, quantity and efficiency.
Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements	Statements prepared by portfolios to explain the Additional Estimates Budget appropriations in terms of outcomes and outputs.
Portfolio Budget Statements	Statements prepared by portfolios to explain the Budget appropriations in terms of outcomes and outputs.
Primary Care	Provides the patient with a broad spectrum of care, both preventive and curative, over a period of time and coordinates all of the care the patient receives.
Radiation Oncology	The study and discipline of treating malignant disease with radiation. The treatment is referred to as radiotherapy or radiation therapy.
Telehealth	The transmission of images, voice and data between two or more health units via telecommunications channels, to provide clinical advice, consultation, education and training services.
Telepsychiatry	The use of communications technology to provide psychiatric services from a distance. Telepsychiatry can be used clinically for both assessment and treatment, is effective for case-conferencing and consultation-liaison work, and can be incorporated into a range of service delivery models.
Zoonotic Diseases	Diseases transmitted from vertebrate (backboned) animals to humans, e.g. dengue fever.