Unpopular Healthcare Terms

We asked people from inside and outside of the healthcare industry which healthcare terms they found annoying, offensive, confusing, or just plain disgusting, and here are the answers we received.

It's a matter of principle …

• I find calling patients "clients" and "consumers" derogatory. I object to the idea of healthcare as a capitalist and profit-driven enterprise.

• The term "healthcare team" is used by administrators and advertisers, and is directed at anybody who isn't an MD. The goal is obvious, but the effect is so insufferably patronizing that you just want to upchuck.

• I dislike the term "diagnosis." It sounds so final when doctors use it, when in reality a diagnosis may not be accurate or final.

• I dislike "provider" – the umbrella term insurance companies use for anybody who works for a living.

• The term "doctor" has become increasingly synonymous with MDs, and that makes some PhDs justifiably resentful about losing their title. As far as I'm concerned, the only person who can rightfully say "I'm the Doctor" is Dr. Who on the BBC.

Unpleasant Associations or High "Gross Factor"

• Appropriately enough, most words that describe bodily secretions also sound disgusting. Examples include "bile," "pus," and "vomit." The word "phlegm" was nominated several times. The word "nausea" was also deemed gross on the basis of its unpleasant associations.

• The term "vaginal discharge" sounds gross, but the technical term "leukorrhea" isn't any better.

• I don't like the word "cellulite," but I think this is mainly because it makes me think of my own fat butt.

• The term "morbidly obese" sounds morbid.

• "Mucous plug" – what more need you say?

Inaccurate, Confusing, or Unnecessary

• I object to the media referring to disease-causing organisms as "bugs." It's inaccurate and perpetuates harmful practices, such as patients demanding antibiotics for viral infections. Bacteria and viruses are distinctly different, and only insects should be called bugs.

• The terms "counselor" and "therapist" are far too generic. They can refer to a psychiatrist, a psychologist, someone with a MSW, someone trained in a particular school of psychotherapy, or even someone with no formal training at all. How would a typical patient know what they're getting?

• "Premenstrual dysphoric disorder" is a stupid way to say PMS, "dysthymic disorder" is a stupid way to say mild depression, and "suicide ideation" is a stupid way to say suicidal thoughts. They just add a confusing new name to a common problem.

• The word "pill" is inaccurate, even though everyone uses it. However, nobody in their right mind is going to say "oral solid dosage form," which is the closest thing to a proper term.

• A "violin deformity" refers to a woman's hips being larger than her chest. It's not a medical condition at all, but a term invented by cosmetic surgeons to drum up business for liposuction and other procedures. Since the vast majority of women have larger hips than busts, most of us would be considered "deformed."

Unpopular Healthcare Terms

It's a matter of principle …

Unpleasant Associations or High "Gross Factor"

Inaccurate, Confusing, or Unnecessary

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Sheng Wang

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