AGENCY NURSE

A nurse who works for a central agency and is assigned duties as needed to one or more hospitals and/or surgeries in any given week.

APNOEA

(US = spelled Apnea), In this book I am describing a condition which is called “apnea of prematurity” or AOP, a fairly common condition in which premature infants stop breathing for 15 to 20 seconds during sleep.  It can be life-threatening, hence a device is typically used to monitor the rate of respiration.

BABY GROW SUIT

In the US, this is often called a one-piece or “onesie”. It is a garment or undergarment meant to cover the infant from top to toe and usually contains snaps to make it easy for a caretaker or parent to change.

BILI LIGHT

Bili lights (phototherapy) are commonly used to help infants with jaundice, a yellow coloring of the skin and eyes related to premature liver function.

BRADYCARDIA

Bradycardia (a.k.a. brady or bradys) happens when the heart slows down below acceptable limits. In babies, whose normal heartrate is around 150 beats per minute, bradycardia occurs when the heart rate is lower than 100 bpm. Bradys are not uncommon amongst preterm babies.  If the body does not recover spontaneously the medical staff will usually stimulate the infant gently until their immature nervous system “remembers” and takes over again.

BRILLIANT

Wonderful, fantastic.  “Dan won first place.  He was a brilliant swimmer”.

CANDY FLOSS

Commonly known as “cotton candy” in the USA.

COTTON WOOL

Cotton Balls

CPAP

“Continuous Positive Airway Pressure”, a CPAP machine is a breathing device for respiratory therapy.  A rigid mask or tubes through a baby's nostrils push a continuous flow of air or oxygen to the airways to help keep lungs expanded and tiny air passages in the lungs open.  This kind of respiratory therapy is preferable to a ventilator as it is less damaging to tiny lungs.

CUPPA

British slang term for a cup of tea as in, “Would you like a nice cuppa?”

DADDY LONGLEGS

British slang term for a night flying insect that has rather long legs and a slender body and which has the annoying habit of flying in an open window and right into one’s face whilst trying to read a book.  Also sometimes called a crane fly.  It does not bite.

DAILY CARE

SCBU term for the general care of an infant.  Usually involves a change of nappy (diaper), thorough cleansing of the genital area and any other soiled body parts.  Is typically finished by a change of clothes.  At Gloucester Royal Hospital, daily care was performed at 6 hour intervals.

DESATURATE

A description of the condition where the level of oxygen in the blood drops.  If the level drops below 92% for more than a few seconds, a monitor alerts the nurse.  The treatment for this condition was to give our infant a higher percentage of oxygen in her breathing mask/prongs.

DODGY

Suspect, a person or thing not to be trusted.

DUMMY

British slang term for a baby’s pacifier.

EBM

Expressed Breast Milk.  Expressed as in pumped out.

FOLLY

Name given to an architectural garden feature which typically is made to look like something that it is not.  An example would be to build an artificial cave or a false ruin.

FOOTIE

A football match, keeping in mind that outside of the US, the word football is used to describe what Americans call the game of soccer.

FOREMILK

Watery milk produced by the human breast which helps to quench a baby’s thirst.  This is the first milk expressed when an infant nurses.

FULL OF BEANS

British slang expression meaning someone has “loads of energy”.  Perhaps too much.

GIT

British slang for a silly fool.

GRAND ROUNDS

A term describing when all the doctors visit all the areas of the hospital together to discuss the patients.  These were conducted only once per week.

HINDMILK

Creamy, fatty milk produced by the human breast which helps an infant to grow and satisfy their hunger.  This milk is expressed later in the nursing cycle.

HOMEBASE

A popular DIY (Do it Yourself) store in England, similar to a Home Depot or Lowe’s in America, and having a similar mix of merchandise.

HOOVERING

British slang term describing the act of using a vacuum cleaner.

JAB

British slang term to describe receiving an immunization or other medication via a hypodermic needle.

JUMPER

Sweater

KNACKERED

Tired out, needing a rest.  “The walk up the hill left me completely knackered.”

LOO

British slang term to describe a room with a toilet, or sometimes just the toilet fixture.

MILTON SOLUTION

A mild chlorine bleach solution made by dropping a Milton tablet into clean water.  Used to disinfect.

MP

Member of Parliament.  An MP is an elected official.

NAFF

Uncool, not in style.

NAPPY

Diaper.

NUTTER

A foolishly insane person, but one who is generally harmless.  Also, a person may be called a nutter if they have done or are planning to do something exceptionally silly.

ONE OFF

An event that takes place only once or a task one has to do or is able to perform only one time.

PennDot Worker/Engineer

American (Pennsylvania) term for a person who works on a road crew repairing and maintaining the public highways.  As with most figures in the public eye, often the unfair subject of jokes about inefficiency or sloth.

(feeling) POORLY

Sick, ill, under the weather.  “I’d have come to work today but I was poorly.”

PUSHCHAIR

Stroller

RAILTRACK

British company in charge of maintaining all the rail lines in the UK.  Regulated by the government.

ROP

Retinopathy of Prematurity, a common eye disease for premature infants.  It is caused when the blood vessels in the eye grow uncommonly fast and into parts of the eye they should not.  Typically this growth occurs in the womb during the last few weeks of pregnancy where the anaerobic environment keeps the growth in check.  Fortunately for most infants it is mild and heals without intervention but in some cases can lead to severe scarring and even blindness.

SATURATION POINT

The point at which blood is considered “full” of oxygen or at which life can be sustained.  In premature infants the SpO2 monitor keeps track of how much oxygen is present in the blood.  Curiously, full saturation is present at 97% and beyond that level sustained exposure causes health problems.  For this reason it is monitored closely in SCBU’s.

SCBU

Special Care Baby Unit, the same as a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in the United States.

SHATTERED

British slang term meaning extremely tired, totally exhausted.  “I didn’t get a wink of sleep last night and now I’m shattered.”

SISTER

British medical term for a nurse.

STRAIGHT AWAY

British slang term meaning to do something immediately.  “I’ll take care of that flat tyre straight away.”

SURGERY

British term for a doctor’s office.

TEA

Besides the obvious reference to a drink made with leaves, this is a British slang term for the evening meal.  “We had beef and Yorkshire pudding for tea.”  Or, “The Kovaches had us over for tea.”

TIDAL BORE

Referenced in this book as the “Severn Bore”, this is a standing wave that is generated on a coastal river.  It must have a funnel shaped estuary with a large difference in the height between high and low tide.  When an especially high tide comes in, such a wave can be generated in a few select locations in the world.  The Severn estuary is one such place where waves up to five feet can be seen several times a year.

TORCH

Flashlight

TPN

Total Parenteral Nutrition.  A substance that is given intravenously and which supplies 99.9% of a person’s nutritional needs.  In the case of a premature infant, this can supply nutrition until the child can begin to tolerate food by mouth.

TRANSIENT

In British SCBU terms, this is an infant who is not expected to stay in the SCBU longer than 24-48 hours.  They are placed in the SCBU due to the possibility of birth complications or a low APGAR score.

VEST

British term for a one piece baby outfit without feet.

WANKER

British slang term meaning literally a man who constantly plays with himself, but is also commonly applied to a man who goofs off frequently or who has a careless attitude.  In Pittsburgh we call these people “jagoffs” although I must admit “wanker” is funnier.

WELLIES

Rubber or plastic waterproof ankle height boots.

WONKY

Something that is wobbling or not performing exactly as expected.  “My car was shaking badly because I had a wonky wheel.”