Nursing Abbreviations: The Ultimate Guide

So, here’s a question many nursing students have asked themselves: why are there so many nursing abbreviations?

If you think about it, nursing abbreviations are borne out of necessity. With fast-paced days and long shifts, abbreviations save time and help with precise communication among the healthcare team. With so much material to keep track of, it’s easier to have short names for things rather than spelling them out each time! As nurses, we rely on quick, effective communication and accurate documentation. Abbreviations are the perfect way to achieve all that. In a sense, they had to be invented.

That said, if they’re new to you, these can be tricky to keep track of. But it’s important that you learn them. As a nursing student, you’ll want to master your understanding and use of medical abbreviations for the NCLEX (and real-deal nursing)!

If you need help learning all the abbreviations and acronyms you need to know as a nurse, don’t worry. We’ve got you! We’re going to go over common medical, NCLEX-related, and professional nursing abbreviations with you. Let’s dive in!

Medical Nursing Abbreviations

There are some medical abbreviations you’ll see in nursing school, during your NCLEX study sessions, and when you’re a real-deal registered nurse. These abbreviations are used by nurses and other medical professionals in a variety of healthcare settings.

Here’s a list of common ones you’ll want to know!

AC: before meals
Ad lib: freely, as desired
ADL: activities of daily living
AMA: against medical advice
AAOx3: alert and oriented to person, place, and time
BID: twice a day
BM: bowel movement
BP: blood pressure
CTA: clear to auscultation
D/C: discontinue
DNR: do not resuscitate
Dx: diagnosis
EtOH: alcohol
HA: headache
HR: heart rate
Hx: history
IM: intramuscular
I&O: intake and output
IV: intravenous
LOC: level of consciousness
NKDA: no known drug allergies
NPO: nothing by mouth
O2 Sat: oxygen saturation
PC: after meals
PERRLA: pupils equal, round, reactive to light and accommodation
PO: by mouth
PRN: as needed
QD: every day
QHS: every night at bedtime
QID: four times a day
QOD: every other day
Q_h: every _ hour(s)
RR: respiratory rate
TID: three times a day
VS: vital signs

Professional Nursing Abbreviations

Ok, let’s chat about the professional nursing abbreviations you’ll see besides the “RN” that gets added to your name after passing the NCLEX. There are abbreviations for various types of nurses, other healthcare professionals, and healthcare organizations!

Here are some examples:

AHA: American Heart Association
ANCC: American Nurses Credentialing Center
APRN: Advanced Practice Registered Nurse
BSN: Bachelor of Science in Nursing
CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
CNA: Certified Nursing Assistant
CNM: Certified Nurse Midwife
CRNA: Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist
DNP: Doctor of Nursing Practice
DO: Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine
ED: Emergency Department
EVS: Environmental Services
GN: Graduate Nurse
ICU: Intensive Care Unit
L&D: Labor and Delivery
LPN/LVN: Licensed Practical Nurse/ Licensed Vocational Nurse
LSW: Licensed Social Worker
MA: Medical Assistant
MD: Doctor of Medicine
MSN: Master of Science in Nursing
NICU: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
NP: Nurse Practitioner
OR: Operating Room
PA: Physician Assistant
PCT: Patient Care Technician
RN: Registered Nurse

NCLEX Abbreviations

Let’s jump to some abbreviations that are related to the NCLEX (after all, NCLEX itself is an abbreviation!). Well, the NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination) is the standard exam that all nursing graduates must pass to become licensed nurses. You’ll see many abbreviations related to the NCLEX, and not all of them deal with the clinical side of nursing.

Here are some abbreviations that are specific to the NCLEX itself:

CAT: Computer Adaptive Testing
- The NCLEX’s way of selecting your questions and estimating your clinical ability based on previous answer choices!
NCLEX: National Council Licensure Exam
- A licensure exam that uses computer adaptive testing to assess and measure a candidate’s nursing competence.
NCSBN: National Council for State Boards of Nursing
- A regulatory body that develops licensure exams and works with state boards to provide uniformity in nursing standards and practices.
NGN: Next-Generation NCLEX
- The newest evolution of the NCLEX that uses a variety of new and traditional item types (questions) to efficiently assess a candidate’s clinical judgment as a nurse.
Qbank: Question Bank
- A term for a resource that provides a variety of practice NCLEX questions.
SATA: Select All That Apply
- Ah, the nursing student’s frenemy (maybe just enemy?). This is an item type on the NCLEX where the candidate will select all options that pertain to the given scenario.

So… how do you keep track of all these nursing abbreviations?

It’s a lot of letters to represent a lot of words, right? It can seem like a lot at first, but you’ll get the hang of it! To help you feel knowledgeable and confident in your use of nursing abbreviations, here’s our three tips for remembering them:

1. Study them!

It sounds silly, because there’s so much to study in nursing school, but including abbreviations in your studies can be helpful!

Abbreviations will show up on the NCLEX, so create flashcards, have a friend quiz you, or check out this post periodically to solidify your knowledge.

2. Make a cheat sheet.

I love a good cheat sheet. Write down commonly used abbreviations (or even abbreviations for your clinical rotation ) on a small note card or a piece of paper you can carry with you.

You can try your hand at making an abbreviation badge card (seriously, many nurses have these to help them remember things from unit specific information to phone numbers).

Looking for a FREE NCLEX cheat sheet? You’ve come to the right place! You’ll find key calculations, conversions, and concepts in this free download. 🙌

3. Practice, practice, practice!

Use the abbreviations regularly in your studies and clinical practice. Try writing out care plans or client notes with abbreviations in them and look up the abbreviations you don’t know as you come across them (just be sure to reference professional resources, like the Joint Commission or facility-specific policies).

For more practice with nursing abbreviations, check out this video from the Blueprint YouTube channel!