Definitions: D

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Daily Living Aids
Assistive aids to help an individual in eating, dressing, bathing, grooming, moving, preparing meals, and seeing.
Dementia
Deterioration of cognitive ability. Symptoms include disorientation and memory loss.
Diabetes
A disorder in which the pancreas produces too little insulin with the result that the body is unable to adequately metabolize sugar.
Diagnostic Related Groups (DRGs)
Billing codes used by hospitals when billing Medicare for inpatient services. Medicare reimburses hospitals a fixed amount based on the DRG code assigned to the patient based upon diagnosis.
Dialysis
Equipment used to clean individual's blood when one or both kidneys are defective or absent, and to remove excess accumulation of drugs or chemicals in the blood.
Disability Insurance
A type of insurance coverage that compensates some percentage of a worker's total wages should they become sick and/or injured and therefore unable to work.
Discharge Planner
A social worker or nurse who assists a patient with health care arrangements following a hospital stay.
Durable Medical Equipment
Medical equipment prescribed by a doctor for use by a patient at home. These reusable items include such things as hospital beds, lifts, wheelchairs, and oxygen equipment.