(~4 minutes to read)
Do these initialisms mean anything to you?
S.O.S.; S.M.A.R.T.; R.I.C.E.; S.A.M.P.L.E.; F.A.S.T.; C.A.L.M…
I promised myself I wouldn’t rant on this website, yet here I go again!
The topic is initialisms masquerading as mnemonics (words that help you remember stuff).
Mnemonics work, as long as you remember both the mnemonic and what it’s intended to remind you of. It also helps if you know the topic. I have no medical background, so no amount of mnemonic-izing is going to help me remember gastro-intestinal tract layers or anterior pituitary hormones.
In corporate life and elsewhere, we specify SMART objectives. We remember the word because we want our objectives to be smart. And then we remember what the letters stand for: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-based. Or was the “R” “relevant”? Oh wait; the “A” was aligned and the “R” was reasonable… And so on. But even though there’s no universal meaning, the mnemonic does help with creating smart objectives.
At school, kids take a CALM course. Once again, we remember the word because we want our lives and careers to be calm. And then we remember that the letters stand for Careers and Life Management.
“Every Good Boy Deserves Favour/Food/Fish/Fudge/F…” reminds beginning musicians which notes sit on the notes of the staff/stave. For some reason, it’s memorable—perhaps because I remember the title of the Moody Blues’ seventh album.
But what does “RICE” have to do with First Aid? Or “SAMPLE”? Or “FAST”?
My first aid certification had expired, so I re-certified recently, and had to learn the above mnemonics. I remember the words (because I wrote them down), and I think I remember what situations they apply to (SAMPLE is secondary survey questions I think, FAST is stroke recognition, and RICE is… a starchy food that goes nicely with vindaloo.)
Now ask me what the mnemonics are supposed to remind me. I remember FAST: Face, Arms, Speech, and Time. But why FAST has to be associated with strokes rather than other health emergencies I don’t know. I guess I just have to remember “FAST strokes”. Associative thought—swimming? Rowing? Painting? Some other activity?
“SAMPLE”? It’s supposed to remind me of Signs/symptoms, Allergies, Medications, Past Illnesses, Last Oral Intake (and/or last menstrual cycle), and Events (leading up to the incident).
The “P” is being used to remind us we need to ask about health history. O-k-a-y. And we’re supposed to remember that “L” is for last oral intake. Or sometimes also last menstrual cycle. Perhaps “P” should be for period… But wait—we don’t ask guys that question, and there’s no need to ask young girls or older women (but what are the age thresholds?)
FYI: this guy is highly unlikely to ask that question of any female of any age in any situation!
Should I ask females about last oral intake as well as or instead of menstruation? Might I be misunderstood? Because of my reluctance to ask the menstrual question, should I remember “SAMPE” for women and “SAMPLE” for men? Should people who are happy to ask “the question” remember “SAMPLLE” for women?
It’s all so confusing!
As for RICE—I don’t remember what the heck it’s connected to or what the letters stand for. I think I’ll have to hand my first aid certificate back.
Thank goodness for search engines though. Apparently, RICE is for soft tissue injuries—no, not a reminder to apply a rice pack—the treatment is Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation. I’ll see if I remember that next time I’m eating curry—rest between mouthfuls, ice my throat, visit the bathroom to relieve compression, and… I’ll leave you to imagine how I interpret “elevate” in the context of vindaloo eating.
It seems that we have to have a mnemonic for everything, no matter how tenuous the link is to the subject in hand. “BEDMAS” is for the sequence of mathematical operations. “RAG” for the colours of traffic lights (okay—I made that one up). And so on.
So here’s another for you—ENOUGH. Let’s see if you can memorize it.
Everything to be remembered does not have to be turned into a mnemonic.
Nothing is worse than having to remember a mnemonic before you can recall the information itself.
Other ways to remember include rote learning, committing to memory, and having a cheat sheet.
Un-connected words used as mnemonics are a pain in the A.R.S.E (Anus-Rectum Sit-upon Exit)
Grrrrrrrr!
Help!!!!! (aka S.O.S.)
There. That’s easy to remember. I trust that mnemonic fetishists everywhere will commit this mnemonic to memory and recall it next time they’re tempted to create a lame one.
Do you have a hate on for any particular acronym or mnemonic? Let me know—leave a comment.