We have put together a jargon buster dictionary designed to give straight forward explanations for many healthcare terms.

The document was developed by our lived experience advisory panel, Patient Voices Matter. During its meetings, it became clear that members didn't always know the meanings of some of the words and terms they were hearing during consultations with doctors and other healthcare professionals. Letters from the NHS were identified as a source of a lot of jargon.

That's how the idea of the jargon buster came about and now we're sharing it on our website for anyone to access. We'll keep adding and updating it, as we hear more words we think need an explanation.

We'd love to hear what you think and any other words or phrases that we should think about adding to the dictionary.

Download the jargon buster dictionary.

Page updated July 2025.