Plain-English explanations of the technical terms and legislation used in this document.
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- A neurodevelopmental condition involving persistent inattention, hyperactivity and impulsiveness that affects how a person functions or develops.
- Best interests
- A decision made for someone who cannot decide for themselves, choosing the option that is best for them.
- Capacity (mental capacity)
- Whether a person can understand and make a particular decision for themselves at the time it needs to be made.
- Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- The independent regulator of health and social care services in England.
- Community mental health team
- A local team of mental health professionals that supports adults with mental health conditions in the community.
- Contemporaneous record
- A note written at the time of, or very soon after, the event it describes, so it is accurate and reliable.
- Continuity of care
- Making sure a patient's treatment, prescribing and monitoring carry on without a gap as they move between services.
- Data Protection Act 2018
- The UK law that sets the rules for how personal information must be handled, alongside the UK General Data Protection Regulation.
- DNA (did not attend)
- A record that a patient did not come to a booked appointment and did not cancel it in advance.
- Gillick competence
- The legal principle that a child under 16 may be mature enough to consent to their own treatment without needing a parent's consent.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
- The regulations setting the fundamental standards that care providers in England must meet, enforced by the Care Quality Commission.
- Mental Capacity Act 2005
- The law that protects and supports people who may be unable to make particular decisions for themselves.
- Monitoring
- Regular checks of a patient's health and response to medication, such as measuring height, weight, blood pressure and heart rate.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
- The national body that produces evidence-based guidance on best practice in health and care.
- Near miss
- An event that could have caused harm but did not, by chance or because it was caught in time.
- Neurodevelopmental condition
- A condition affecting how the brain develops and works, which can influence attention, behaviour, learning or social skills.
- NICE guideline NG43
- The national guidance on moving young people from children's to adults' health or social care services.
- NICE guideline NG87
- The national guidance on diagnosing and managing attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
- Person-centred care
- Care that is shaped around the individual's own needs, preferences and goals, with them involved in decisions about it.
- Prescriber (non-medical prescriber)
- A clinician qualified to prescribe medicines; a non-medical prescriber is a trained nurse, pharmacist or other professional, rather than a doctor, who is authorised to prescribe.
- Reasonable adjustments
- Changes a service makes so that a disabled person can use it as easily as anyone else.
- Receiving service
- The service that will take over a patient's care, such as an adult ADHD service, a community mental health team, or a general practice running shared care.
- Registered Manager
- The person registered with the regulator as responsible for the day-to-day running of a service.
- Regulation 9 (Person-centred care)
- The rule requiring care to be tailored to the individual and their needs and preferences.
- Regulation 12 (Safe care and treatment)
- The rule requiring care and treatment to be provided safely, including safe management of medicines and risks.
- Regulation 17 (Good governance)
- The rule requiring providers to have effective systems to monitor and improve the quality and safety of their service.
- Safeguarding
- Protecting people's health, wellbeing and rights and keeping them safe from abuse, harm or neglect.
- Shared care
- An arrangement where a specialist service and a general practice share responsibility for a patient's ongoing prescribing and monitoring under a written protocol.
- Single assessment framework
- The structure the regulator uses to judge a service, built around quality statements and five key questions (safe, effective, caring, responsive, well-led).
- Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
- A written, step-by-step instruction setting out how a particular task or process should be carried out consistently and safely.
- Transfer of care
- The handover of clinical responsibility for a patient from one provider or service to another.
- Transfer summary
- A written record of a patient's diagnosis, history, medication, monitoring and risks, sent to the service taking over their care.
- Transition
- The planned process of moving a young person from children's and young people's services to adult services; it is a process, not a single event.
- Transition coordinator / key worker
- A named person who organises an individual young person's transition and acts as their main point of contact.
- UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)
- The UK's main data-protection law governing how personal information is collected and used.