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Medicine vocabulary · Hospital Departments and Staff

Discharge summary

Meaning in medicine, with examples

nounCommon term

In medicine, discharge summary means: A document written when a patient leaves hospital that explains the diagnosis, treatment, medicines and follow-up plan for the GP and the patient.

In Turkish: epikriz, taburcu özeti

How it is used

Usually written by junior doctors and sent electronically to the GP. A good discharge summary lists medication changes and clear actions, such as 'GP to repeat bloods in two weeks'. It may also be called a discharge letter.

Example sentences

  1. Can you finish the discharge summary so the patient can go home before lunch?

  2. The discharge summary didn't mention that his warfarin had been stopped.

Common collocations

  • write a discharge summary
  • electronic discharge summary
  • send the discharge summary
  • discharge summary to the GP
  • dischargeTo officially let a patient leave hospital or a clinic's care because they no longer need it there. As a noun it can also mean fluid that comes out of the body.
  • general practitionerA doctor based in the community who treats a wide range of everyday health problems, provides long-term care and refers patients to hospital specialists when needed.
  • follow-upA later appointment or check to see how a patient is doing after treatment, a test result or a hospital stay.
  • junior doctorIn the UK, any qualified doctor who is not yet a consultant or GP, from first-year doctors to senior trainees.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Hospital Departments and Staff

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.