During your visit to the IWK, there are a lot of people, terms, and acronyms you might hear that you don’t understand. To help, we’ve put together the following lists—these are the professionals and the terms that you might come across.
The people you may meet
We’d like to introduce some of the members of your, or your child’s, health care team who you may meet during your stay. All staff at IWK Health wear identification tags to help you identify them.
Attending physician
A member of the Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine, this is the doctor in charge of your, or your child’s care.
Residents
Fully-qualified medical doctors who have received their medical degree and are pursuing advanced postgraduate training. They are physicians, not medical students. They may care for you without supervision in areas where they are qualified.
Medical Fellows
Qualified consultant medical doctors who are pursuing additional medical education in a sub-speciality field.
Nursing staff
They are assigned to you or your child/youth 24 hours a day, and provide the most immediate care to you or your child. Nurses coordinate much of the activity of the health care team, as well as provide individual support for you and your family. Nursing staff are available to help answer any questions you have regarding your, or your child’s/youth’s, care.
Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)
A registered nurse with advanced education in nursing and an excellent source of information and support for parents. Clinical Nurse Specialists are available for consultation in many of the specialty care teams.
Nurse Practitioner (NP)
Has advanced nursing and medical education in the care of women and critically ill newborns. They help provide specialized care to these groups.
Medical students/clerks
People in their final two years of medical school. They do not make independent decisions about treatment, but are in the IWK as part of their medical education.
Ward clerk
The person who usually greets visitors and answers the telephone during the day on the nursing unit. They will see that your questions or requests are given the appropriate attention.
Ward Aides
Maintain the supplies and equipment that patients use while staying in the IWK.
Housekeeping staff
Ensure the units and areas are kept clean.
You may also meet other important members of your or your child’s health care team, such as the people listed below.
- Bilingual Interpreters
- Child Life Specialists and Child Life Workers
- Cultural Health Interpreters
- Clinical Dietitians-Nutritionists
- Educators / Professional Development Coordinators
- Mental Health Workers
- Occupational Therapists
- Out-of-Province Liaison Nurses
- Spiritual Care Workers
- Pharmacists
- Psychologists
- Physiotherapists
- Researchers
- Respiratory Therapists
- Social Workers
- Speech Therapists
- Teachers
- Technologists (X-ray, Lab, Hearing and Speech etc.)
- Volunteers
The terms you may hear
Accreditation
A requirement for all Canadian health organizations, it involves a visit by a team of surveyors from across Canada who meet with specific IWK interdisciplinary care teams. These interdisciplinary care teams complete an in-depth evaluation of the care and service they provide and identify opportunities for additional improvement. Certificates of Accreditation are awarded by the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation (CCHFA) to deserving health facilities. IWK Health is an accredited organization.
Advocate
A person or group of people who actively support or argue for a cause, policy, etc. on behalf of those who need assistance.
Doula
A woman experienced in childbirth, who provides physical, emotional, practical, and informational support to a mother before, during, and after childbirth.
Mother-baby nursing
The health care team that cares for the mother and baby together throughout their stay in the IWK.
Continuum of care
Health services can be considered to form a continuum, ranging from health promotion and illness prevention activities, to sophisticated, specialized acute care.
Family-centred care
A way of caring for patients that recognizes and respects the essential role of family in their lives. Family-centred care strives to support families in their care-giving role and promotes a partnership of mutual respect and support among families and staff.
Health care
Those services provided to individuals or communities through health organizations or professions. The aim of health care is to enhance, maintain, restore, and monitor health.
Health care team
A team made up of staff, physicians, other health care professionals, partners, and volunteers, as appropriate, who together are responsible to put in place and review a care plan that meets the needs of patients and families.
Health promotion
The process that enables people to increase control over, and to improve their health. Health is seen as a resource for everyday life, not the objective of living. The fundamental conditions and resources for health are peace, shelter, education, food, income, a stable ecosystem, sustainable resources, social justice, and equity.
Learning
As a learning organization the IWK is committed to providing today's and tomorrow's health professionals with advanced knowledge about health, illness and disease, and to creating an environment characterized by a spirit of inquiry, innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning.
Learners
The IWK partners with students in a variety of health care programs at universities throughout the Maritimes and health professionals working in partner agencies. Learners are a very important part of the health care team. As a teaching centre, the IWK is committed to providing learners with the valuable, practical experience they need to pursue their careers as health care providers. The IWK also recognizes all staff and volunteers as learners, whether through orientation to a new role, introduction to new technologies, or the introduction of new work processes.
Primary care
Care to which users have direct access. It can include diagnosis and treatment, referral to secondary health care level, prevention care, and heath promotion and education. Primary health care could be visiting your family doctor or nurse practitioner, talking to a dietician or a pharmacist, or calling a toll-free health advice line to talk to a health professional.
Program-based care
A way of providing care that puts patients and families first by creating interdisciplinary care teams whose members work together to coordinate the care of families.
Secondary care
Care for which patients do not have direct access and for which they must be referred from some other part of the health system.
Tertiary care
A form of care that is highly specialized or complex.
Well-being
If you refer to someone's well-being, you’re referring to whether they are healthy, happy, and living a life that is enjoyable.
The acronyms you may encounter
IWK = Izaak Walton Killam
CCG = Children's Cancer Group
CHIRPP = Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program
CNS = Clinical Nurse Specialist
CIU = Clinical Investigation Unit
CSPD = Central Sterile Processing Department
DI = Diagnostic Imaging
ECG = Electrocardiography
EEG = Electroencephalography
EMG = Electromyography
ENT = Ear, Nose, & Throat
ERG = Electrodiagnosis
FATC = Fetal Assessment and Treatment Centre
FCCC = Family-Centred Care, Family-Centred Care Council, Family-Centred Care Coordinator
HR = Human Resources
IT = Information Technology
IVF = InVitro Fertilization
MAC = Medical Advisory Committee
NICU = Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
6 NORTH Patient Care Team = Nephrology, Oncology, Research, Transplant, Hematology
PAT = Clinic Pediatric Assessment Treatment Clinic
PDC = Professional Development Consultant
PICU = Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
PMU = Pediatric Medical Unit
PNC = Perinatal Clinic
PR = Public Relations
RCP = Reproductive Care Program
RN = Registered Nurse
RRU = Respiratory Rehabilitation Unit
UPA = University Pediatric Association