Reduction of Medical Verbiage: Fewer Words, More Meaning
Authors: Anthony E. Voytovich
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1999)

Editorials20 July 1999Reduction of Medical Verbiage: Fewer Words, More MeaningAnthony E. Voytovich, MDAnthony E. Voytovich, MDUniversity of Connecticut School of Medicine; Farmington, CT 06030-1905 (Voytovich)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-131-2-199907200-00013 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Air traffic controllers and military personnel use an utterly unambiguous but limited vocabulary in their moment-to-moment operations. Physicians rely heavily upon a much larger, less precise terminology, much of it based in tradition and habit. In an earlier issue, Donnelly (1) reminded us of the repetitive and nonreflective use of rhetorical devices that reveal our biases about the reliability of data sources. Whereas the patient “says,” “reports,” “claims,” or “denies,” the physician “notes,” “observes,” and “finds.” Laboratory and imaging studies “show” and “reveal.”Lawson and Ingman (2), in writing about terminology in the care of the elderly, suggest that there ...References1. Donnelly WJ. The language of medical case histories. Ann Intern Med. 1997;127:1045-48. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Lawson IR, Ingman SR. The Language of Geriatric Care, Implications for Professional Review. North Haven, CT: Connecticut Health Services Research Series. 1975; 24-33. Google Scholar3. Brown SH, Miller RA, Camp HN, Guise DA, Walker HK. Empirical derivation of an electronic clinically useful problem statement system. Ann Intern Med. 1999;131:117-26. LinkGoogle Scholar4. Ende J. Feedback in clinical medical education. JAMA. 1983;250:777-81. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Voytovich AE, Harper L, Rippey RM. Evaluating analytic reasoning in the multi-problem patient [Abstract]. Proceedings of the Eighteenth Annual Conference on Research in Medical Education. Washington, DC; 1979. Google Scholar6. Voytovich AE, Rippey RM, Suffredini A. Premature conclusions in diagnostic reasoning. J Med Educ. 1985;60:302-7. MedlineGoogle Scholar7. Dubeau CE, Voytovich AE, Rippey RM. Premature conclusions in the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia: cause and effect. Med Decis Making. 1986;6:169-73. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Davidoff F. Medicine and commerce. 2: The gift [Editorial]. Ann Intern Med. 1998;128:572-5. LinkGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: University of Connecticut School of Medicine; Farmington, CT 06030-1905 (Voytovich)Corresponding Author: Anthony E. Voytovich, MD, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, 263 Farmington Avenue, Farmington, CT 06030-1905; e-mail, [email protected]uchc.edu. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoEmpirical Derivation of an Electronic Clinically Useful Problem Statement System Steven H. Brown , Randolph A. Miller , Henry N. Camp , Dario A. Guise , and H. Kenneth Walker Clinically Useful Problem Statement Systems Kenneth J. Gorelick Metrics Cited byHealthcare Data and Exchange StandardsRecording the Clinical Data BasePerspective: Whither the Problem List? Organ-Based Documentation and Deficient Synthesis by Medical TraineesLes autopsies médicales : analyse rétrospective des demandes et apport de leurs résultats à la communauté hospitalo-universitaireClinically Useful Problem Statement SystemsKenneth J. Gorelick, MD 20 July 1999Volume 131, Issue 2Page: 146-147KeywordsLibrariesPatientsRacial and ethnic issuesReasoningResearch designResearch laboratoriesResearch quality assessmentSkeletonTreatment guidelinesUndergraduates ePublished: 15 August 2000 Issue Published: 20 July 1999 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 1999 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...