Dr
Paul Keeley of the Glasgow Royal Infirmary
is compiling a list of the funniest modern slang used by doctors and nurses on
the wards of British hospitals.
The
newer examples include:
Fonzie:
A middle grade doctor who is unflappable. (From the Happy Days character, but
with a more recent reference to the final scene in Pulp Fiction in the cafe when
Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) tells Yolanda (Amanda Plummer) to be cool "We’re
gonna be like three little Fonzies here.")
Hasselhoff:
Any patient who goes into accident and emergency with an injury that has a bizarre
explanation. (Named after Baywatch legend David Hasselhoff who reportedly said
that he hit his head on a chandelier while shaving...)
Blamestorming:
"A session of mutual recrimination during which a multidisciplinary team
attempts to apportion blame for some particularly egregious error."
Jack
Bauer: A doctor who has been on shift for the last 24 hours and is still standing.
(From 24, starring Keifer Sutherland.)
Mini
Me: A trainee or medical student who emulates their senior too much.
Ringo:
An expendable member of the team (Ringo Starr, the Beatles).
Ward
101: A ward that fills a doctor with dread, from the George Orwell Room 101,
1984.
Other
words include: a 'disco biscuit' (ecstasy tablet), '404 moment'
(patient records go missing, based on '404 Document not found' on internet) and
'Adminosphere' (palatial offices of the senior hospital management or dean).
paul.keeley@northglasgow.scot.nhs.uk
