Abbreviations and acronyms

Abbreviations and acronyms should be avoided whenever possible. Names not commonly known by your audience should not be abbreviated. If you must use them, follow these best practices.

You should always spell out a full phrase the first time it appears on a page. You can also include the acronym in parenthesis with that first instance. For example:

The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) is responsible for planning and coordinating the state's system of higher education.

Commonly used abbreviations and acronyms

If you must use an acronym or abbreviation, be sure it is the correct one. Below is a list of phrases and terms with their preferred acronyms.

Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)

ACGME is a private, non-profit council that evaluates and accredits over 8,800 medical residency programs in the United States. The UICOMR Family Medicine Residency Program is ACGME-accredited.

Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society (AΩA)

Alpha Omega Alpha, founded in 1902, is the national medical honor society. Its mission statement is: Alpha Omega Alpha — dedicated to the belief that in the profession of medicine we will improve care for all by: recognizing high educational achievement; honoring gifted teaching; encouraging the development of leaders in academia and the community; supporting the ideals of humanism; and promoting service to others.

Area Health Education Centers

The Illinois AHEC Network Program is run by the National Center for Rural Health Professions.

Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS)

It is the service used to transmit applications and supporting documents from medical student applicants to residency and fellowship programs.

Illinois Board of Higher Education

IBHE oversees policy and planning for the state’s system of colleges and universities and is the certifying body for the National Center for Rural Health Professions.

Institutional Review Board

Often referred to as IRB. This board reviews methods proposed for research involving human subjects to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to protect the rights and welfare of participating subjects.

Medical Service Plan (MSP)

Medical Service Plan is the operational side of the College of Medicine’s clinical operations.

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Note plural. Abbreviated NIH. One of the world’s foremost medical research centers, an agency of the US Department of Health and Human Services, the NIH is made up of 27 different components and centers and is a major source of research grants.

OB-GYN

is acceptable in all references for obstetrics and gynecology, a medical specialty, per AP. Not OB/GYN or OBGYN. Spell out Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

PI

Principal Investigator, the lead researcher for a grant project.

University of Illinois Chicago (UIC)

One of three universities in the University of Illinois System (The others are the University of Illinois at Springfield and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.)

UIC Alumni Association

UICAA is an organization formed in 2018 for the 200,000+ alumni of the University of Illinois at Chicago alumni, which includes the regional campus alumni.

Urban Health Program (UHP )

On all three sites, (Chicago, Peoria, and Rockford) of the University of Illinois College of Medicine, COM-UHP offers a variety of programs and services for students who are underrepresented in medicine, specifically African-Americans, Native Americans, Latinos/as, and those from disadvantaged backgrounds that: attract talent, provide access to medical education, support even progression and academic excellence, as well as develop leaders who will advance health equity. Therefore, regardless of the campus to which you are assigned, you have a COM-UHP champion for your success. Since 1969, COM-UHP has assisted more than 2,000 African-American, Native American and Latino/a students in gaining admission to and graduating from the University of Illinois College of Medicine.

University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System

Use the full name in first or formal references with the parenthetical (UI Health) following the full name. Subsequent references can be abbreviated by using UI Health. UI Health is used for the hospital, clinics and health science colleges when referring to anything clinical or patient-focused, as well as translational research. Teaching and other research are activities of the colleges.

United States Medical Licensure Examination® (USMLE®) – The United States Medical Licensing Examination

The United States Medical Licensing Examination ® (USMLE®) is a three-step examination for medical licensure in the United States and is sponsored by the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) and the National Board of Medical Examiners® (NBME®). The USMLE assesses a physician's ability to apply knowledge, concepts, and principles, and to demonstrate fundamental patient-centered skills, that are important in health and disease and that constitute the basis of safe and effective patient care. Each of the three Steps of the USMLE (Step 1, Step 2 Clinical Knowledge or CK, Step 2 Clinical Skills or CS) complements the others; no Step can stand alone in the assessment of readiness for medical licensure.