Written by
ChartFlow Team
Date published
April 22, 2024
Medical terminology and abbreviations can be frustrating to master. To make matters worse, there are a handful of abbreviations students need to know even though they’re on the “Do Not Use” list. So what abbreviations should you avoid?
Do Not Use List
The Joint Commission published a list of abbreviations that should not be used due to the fact they can be mixed up with other terms, or are generally unclear.
These abbreviations are copied directly from the published Fact Sheet which can be found here:
As you can see, some of these (such as Q.D. and QOD) are still found in charts and facilities around the country so healthcare workers need to be aware of them, but not use them.
If you’re a Medication Aide or Pharmacy Tech student, you will be tested on these, so you should definitely memorize the list. If you’re a Nursing student, rules regarding trailing zeros always pop up in pharmacology class, so you should also make sure you understand the guidelines surrounding these.
How to memorize
MedEd America: Medical Abbreviations
The instructor in this video does a great, 13 minute free lesson on medical abbreviations including which ones you should avoid. It’s a PowerPoint based mini-lecture so it isn’t the most exciting resource we’ve found, but it’ll cover everything you need to know about abbreviations without taking up too much of your time.
Free Quizlet: Do Not Use Medical Abbreviations
This Quizlet set was not made by us, but we did review it for accuracy before linking to it here. These free flashcards allow you to review the Do Not Use list abbreviations along with the reason each abbreviation is banned. We highly suggest using these flashcards for Medical Scribes, Medication Aide students, Medical Assistant students, and anyone else who is responsible for charting medication information.
How to Practice: CharFlow Free Medication Aide EHR Practice
We’ve created three patients with medication orders in our educational EHR, ChartFlow.io. If you create a free account, you can use these patients to practice entering information in our Medication Administration Record (MAR) using appropriate abbreviations. Review the orders currently in the site to make sure you can understand all abbreviations before charting in the MAR.
Remember, in real life, you would never chart an action until after an action has been completed.
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