All terms
Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)
Also known as: CNS, Specialist nurse
A senior nurse with expertise in a specific area (e.g. diabetes, cancer, palliative care) who supports patients with education, coordination, and ongoing care.
Signposting to the relevant CNS (e.g. a Macmillan or diabetes specialist nurse) is often part of a complete, patient-centred management plan.
More glossary terms
- ABCDE approachA systematic method for assessing and treating an acutely unwell patient — Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure — dealing with each before moving on.
- AMPLE historyA focused emergency history — Allergies, Medications, Past history, Last meal, Events — taken quickly in acute situations.
- ARCPThe annual assessment that decides whether a doctor in training has met the competencies to progress to the next stage.
- AVPU scaleA rapid way to grade consciousness — Alert, responds to Voice, responds to Pain, Unresponsive — used in initial assessment.
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