ABN Association of British Neurologists

ABPI Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry

ABS Adult Basic Skills

a c ante cibos - before food

AC AnteCubital vein or fossa (IV)

or Anterior Cephalic vein

or Audit Commission

ACA Area Cost Adjustment (part of the SSA)

ACAC Area Clinical Audit Committee

ACAD Ambulatory Care and Diagnostic Centre

ACAS Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service

ACBS Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances

ACC Adjusted Credit Ceiling (part of capital control framework)

ACCA Association of Chartered Certified Accountants

ACCE Association of County Chief Executives

ACCEA Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards

ACD Active Compression-Decompression (CPR)

ACDA Advisory Committee on Distinction Awards (obs)

ACDF Active Communities Development Fund

ACDC Ambulatory Care and Diagnostic Centre

ACDM - Association of Clinical Data Managers

ACDP Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens

ACE Angiotensin Converting Enzyme is a sort of hormone in the kidney which controls the body's fluid/salt balance and has a major role in maintaining blood pressure.

or Arts Council of England

ACEO Association of Chief Education Officers

ACEVO Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations

ACF Association of Charitable Foundations

ACG Annual Capital Guideline (part of Local Government capital control framework)

ACHCEW Association of Community Health Councils for England and Wales (obsolete)

ACHMS Asian Community Mental Health Services

ACIE Association of Charity Independent Examiners

ACIG Academy of Medical Royal Colleges Information Group

ACL Aggregate Credit Limit (part of capital control framework)

ACLS Advanced Coronary Life Support

ACM Assessment and Care Management - Social Services community care purchaser division.

ACME Advisory Committee on Medical Establishment (Scotland)

or Alliance for Continuing Medical Education

ACMHS Asian Community Mental Health Services

ACMT Advisory Committee on Medical Training

AcoP Accounting Code of Practice

ACORN A Classification Of Residential Neighbourhoods (used in SSA)

ACP American College of Physicians

ACRA Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation (obs)

ACRE Action with Communities in Rural England

ACRPI Association of Clinical Research for the Pharmaceutical Industry

ACS Association of Charity Shops

ACSES Association of Council Secretaries & Solicitors

ACT Assertive Community Treatment

ACTAF Association of Community Trusts and Foundations Now Community Foundation Network

ACTH Adenocorticotrophic hormone

ACTS Agency for Community Team Support

ACTR Additional Cost of Teaching and Research (in Scotland)

ACU Active Community Unit (part of the Home Office)

ADA Americans with Disabilities Act

ADC Automatic Data Capture

ADCU Anti-Drugs Co-ordination Unit

ADD Attention Deficit Disorder

ADH Additional Duty Hours

or antidiurectic hormone

ADHD Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

ADI Acceptable Daily Intake

ADL Activities of daily living - measures of independence in being able to perform personal care and other basic daily tasks; for example eating, washing, dressing, getting in and out of bed, climbing stairs etc.

ADMS Assistant Director of Medical Services

ADNS Assistant Director of Nursing Services

ADP Automatic Data Processing

or adenosine 5' pyrophosphate

ADQ Average Daily Quantity. Average amount of a medication prescribed for an adult in England.

ADR adverse drug reaction

ADS Attribution Data Set - A list of patients on GP lists in March 1998 which matches patients by age and sex to practices and to census enumeration districts (ED)

ADSL Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line

ADSS Association of Directors of Social Services - Social Services’ Directors Trades Union.

ADSU Automatic Distress Signal Unit

AE air entry - part of the examination of the chest

AED Automatic External Defibrillator

AEF Aggregate External Finance

AELS Advanced Endocrinological Life Support

AEN Additional Educational Needs (part of SSA)

AFAIAA As Far As I Am Aware

AFB acid-fast bacillus

AFC Agenda for Change

AFOM Associate of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine

AFPP Association for Perioperative Practice

AFR Annual Financial Return

AfS Action for Sustainability

AFWG Allocation Formula Working Group (part of Home Office)

AGM Annual General Meeting

AGMA Association of Greater Manchester Authorities

AGMETS Advisory Group on Medical and Dental Education, Training and Staffing

AGREE Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation in Europe

AGUM Association for Genitourinary Medicine

AHA Associate of the Institute of Hospital Administrators

or Area Health Authority (defunct)

AHCPA Association of Health Centre and Practice Administrators

AHHRM Association of Healthcare Human Resource Management Personnel Directors Union

AHP Allied health professional

AHRQ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

AICD Automatic Internal Cardiac Defibrillator

AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

AIF Area investment frameworks

AIM Advanced Informatics in Medicine

or Association of Independent Multifunds (obsolete)

AIMS Association for Improvements in Maternity Services

AIOPI - Association of Information Officers in the Pharmaceutical Industry

AIQ Available In Quarters

aka Also Known As

ALA Association of Local Authorities. Now part of the LGA

ALAC Artificial Limb and Appliance Centre. Now known as the DSC

ALARM Association of Local Authority Risk Managers

ALATS Association of Local Authority Treasurer's Societies

ALD Adult with Learning Difficulties

ALF Activity-Led Funding

ALG Association of London Government

ALI Adult Learning Inspectorate

ALM Action Learning for Managers

ALMO Arms Length Management Organisation

ALPHA Access to Learning for the Public Health Agenda

alos Average Length of Stay

ALPHA Access to Learning for the Public Health

ALS Advanced Life Support

ALSOB Alcohol Like Substance On Breath

ALT /SGPT liver function tests

ALW Adult Learners' Week

AMA American Medical Association

or Against Medical Advice

AMBEX Ambulance Exhibition

AME Annual Managed Expenditure

AMEE Association for Medical Education in Europe

AMIA American Medical Informatics Association

AMP adenosine 5' phosphate

or Asset Management Plan

AMPS Assessment of Motor Skills

AMQ Average Monthly Quantities. The assumed maintenance dose per month for an adult of a drug.

AMRA Asset Management Revenue Account

AMRC Association of Medical Research Charities

or Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

AMS Army Medical Services

AMSPAR Association of Medical Secretaries, Practice Administrators and Receptionists

ANC Ante Natal Clinic

ANH Artificial Nutrition and Hydration

ANI Automatic Number Identification (telephony)

ANSI American National Standards Institute

AOB Alcohol On Breath

AOC Adult Opportunity Centre

AODP Association of Operating Department Practitioners formerly BAODA British Association of Operating Department Assistants

AOMRC Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

AONB Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

AOP Association of Optometrists

AOT Assertive Outreach Team

APA Association of Police Authorities

APC Area Prescribing Committee

or Antigen-presenting Cell

APD Advanced Professional Development

APH Aged Persons Home. aka EPH

or Association of Public Health - now turned into UKPHA

APHA American Public Health Association

APLS Advanced Paediatric Life Support

APM Arbitrage Pricing Model

APMS Alternative Primary Medical Services

APPG All Party Parliamentary Group

APROP Action for the Proper Regulation of Private Hospitals

APSE Association for Public Service Excellence

APT&C Administrative, Professional, Technical & Clerical - former grading of local government staff

AQH Association for Quality in Healthcare

AQS Air Quality Strategy

AR analytical standard of reagent purity

ARIF Aggressive Research Intelligence Facility

ARM Association of Radical Midwives

or artificial rupture of the membranes

ARSH Association of Royal Society of Health

ARVAC Association for Research in the Voluntary and Community Sector

as Auricle Sinistrus (Left Ear)

ASA Advertising Standards Authority

ASAP As Soon As Possible

ASB Anti-Social Behaviour

ASBAH Association for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus

ASBO Anti-Social Behaviour Order

ASCII American Standard Code for Information Interchange - Plain text

ASD Autistic Spectrum Disorder

ASEC Associate Specialist Education Committee

ASH Action on Smoking and Health

ASIM American Society of Internal Medicine

ASIT Association of Surgeons in Training

ASME Association for the Study of Medical Education

ASP Active Server Protocol

ASPFA Asylum Seekers and People From Abroad - a Social Services team who pay out cash to people who cannot get Social Security Benefits

ASSIST Association for Information Management and Technology Staff in the NHS

ASTRO-PU Age Sex Temporary Resident Originated Prescribing Unit.

ASW Approved Social Worker - A social worker approved to carry out Sections under the Mental Health Act.

ASWCS Avon Somerset and Wiltshire Cancer Services

ATC Adult Training Centre (obs)

ATfJ Action Teams for Jobs

ATLS Advanced Trauma Life Support

ATMD Association of Trust Medical Directors

ATP adenosine 5' triphosphate

ATTRACT - Ask TRiP to Rapidly Alleviate Confused Thoughts

Atts Attendances

ATU Alcohol Treatment Unit

au Right Ear

AUDGP Association of University Departments of General Practice (obs)

AVG Ambulatory Visit Group

AVMA Action for the Victims of Medical Accidents

AZT Azidothymidine (or zidovudine)