Understanding your medical notes
Discharge summary explained: how to read yours in plain English
Leaving hospital with a letter full of abbreviations and jargon? This guide walks through what each part of a discharge summary means, decodes the most common shorthand, and gives you the right questions to ask your GP — so you know exactly what happened and what to do next.
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Explain my discharge summary → Your text isn't stored. Available on web, iOS & Android.What is a discharge summary?
A discharge summary — also called a discharge letter — is the document a hospital produces when you're discharged (sent home or transferred). It's written primarily for your GP, which is why it's dense with clinical shorthand, but it's your health information and you're entitled to a copy.
In plain terms, it answers five questions: why you were admitted, what was found, what was done, what's changed about your medication, and what happens next. Once you know it follows that shape, a wall of jargon becomes much easier to navigate.
What's in a discharge summary, section by section
Most NHS and hospital discharge summaries include the same building blocks, usually in this order:
- Patient & admission details — your name, date of birth, hospital number, and the dates you were admitted and discharged.
- Diagnosis (Dx) — the main reason you were in hospital (the primary diagnosis), plus any secondary diagnoses or other conditions managed during your stay.
- Presenting complaint — the symptom or problem you came in with (e.g. "chest pain").
- Summary of care / clinical narrative — a short story of what happened: assessments, what the team thought was going on, and how you responded to treatment.
- Investigations & results — the tests you had (bloods, scans, ECGs) and the key findings.
- Procedures — any operations or interventions performed.
- Medications (TTO / TTA) — the drugs you're going home with, with doses and timing. Crucially, this section usually flags what's new, changed, or stopped compared with before — read it carefully.
- Allergies — any allergies or adverse reactions recorded.
- Follow-up plan — appointments arranged, scans or blood tests to be repeated, and timeframes (often written as 6/52, 3/12, etc.).
- Actions for your GP — specific things your GP is asked to do, such as monitoring a result or continuing a medication.
Common discharge summary abbreviations, decoded
Discharge letters lean heavily on Latin and clinical shorthand. Here are the ones you'll meet most often:
| Shorthand | What it means |
|---|---|
| Dx | Diagnosis |
| Hx | History (your medical background) |
| Ix | Investigations (tests) |
| Rx | Treatment or prescription |
| TTO / TTA | "To take out" / "to take away" — the medicines you go home with |
| OD | Once a day |
| BD | Twice a day |
| TDS | Three times a day |
| QDS | Four times a day |
| ON / OM | At night / in the morning |
| PRN | As needed (only when required, e.g. for pain) |
| F/U | Follow-up |
| 6/52 · 3/12 · 5/7 | 6 weeks · 3 months · 5 days (number over 52 = weeks, over 12 = months, over 7 = days) |
| NBM | Nil by mouth (nothing to eat or drink) |
| IV | Intravenous (into a vein) |
Don't recognise an abbreviation that isn't here? Patiently AI's built-in medical glossary covers over 9,000 terms — or just paste the whole letter in and it explains everything in context.
How to read your discharge summary, step by step
- Start with the diagnosis. Find "Dx" or "Diagnosis" — that's the headline of why you were admitted.
- Read the summary of care for the story of what happened and how you responded.
- Go through your medications line by line. Check which are new, changed, or stopped, and make sure you understand the dose and timing (OD, BD, etc.).
- Note every follow-up. Write each appointment, repeat test, and timeframe somewhere you'll see it.
- Flag anything you don't understand to ask your GP or pharmacist — see the questions below.
A real example, simplified
"Dx: Type 2 NSTEMI, EF 45% on TTE. PCI to mid-LAD with DES…" becomes: "You had a mild heart attack and your heart's pumping ability is slightly reduced. A stent was placed in a heart artery to improve blood flow." That's the kind of translation Patiently AI does for your whole letter.
Try it with your own letter → Paste, upload, or photograph your discharge summary.Questions to ask your GP about your discharge summary
- Which of my medications are new or changed, and how long should I take them?
- Are there any side effects I should watch for with my new medicines?
- What symptoms would mean I should seek help urgently?
- What follow-up appointments or repeat tests do I need, and who arranges them?
- Are there activities I should avoid while I recover, and for how long?
Patiently AI generates personalised "Questions for your doctor" automatically from the content of your letter — a quick way to walk into your next appointment prepared.
Frequently asked questions
What is a hospital discharge summary?
It's the document a hospital produces when you leave. It records why you were admitted, what was found, what treatment or procedures you had, any changes to your medication, and what should happen next — including follow-up appointments and actions for your GP. A copy usually goes to your GP, and you're entitled to one too.
What does TTO or TTA mean?
TTO ("to take out") and TTA ("to take away") both mean the medications the hospital is sending you home with. The list shows the drug, dose, and timing, and usually flags which medicines are new, changed, or stopped compared with before your admission.
What do OD, BD, TDS, QDS and PRN mean?
They're Latin dosing abbreviations: OD = once a day, BD = twice a day, TDS = three times a day, QDS = four times a day, ON = at night, OM = in the morning, and PRN = "as needed". If any of your doses are unclear, check with your pharmacist or GP.
What does 6/52 or 3/12 mean on a discharge letter?
It's shorthand for time. A number over 52 means weeks (6/52 = 6 weeks), over 12 means months (3/12 = 3 months), and over 7 means days (5/7 = 5 days). So "F/U cardiology 6/52" means a cardiology follow-up in six weeks.
Can Patiently AI explain my discharge summary for me?
Yes. Paste the text — or upload a photo, PDF, or Word file — and Patiently AI produces a plain-English explanation in seconds, decodes the abbreviations, lists the medications mentioned, and suggests questions to ask your doctor. It's free, needs no account, and removes identifying details on your device before processing.