PTE CTE

10:13 Mar 31, 2017 

The job is away now with the footnote as mentioned in my last post and following Liz's train of thought which was much appreciated. Thank you again, Liz.
However, I did like Marie Wilson's suggestion of "Procedente de consultas externas" as it fits the situation. And Marie does add that it is a term often used in the Spanish health system. But still and all, it's a big thank you to one and all for having replied to my SOS.

00:53 Mar 31, 2017 

¿Podría ser "paciente consciente? En urgencias utilizan muchas abreviaturas de este tipo. No creo que tenga que ver con otra cosa. Pero estamos adivinando... Yo consultaría a mi cliente.

21:02 Mar 30, 2017 

"Consulta externa" does seem to fit, but I can't help thinking that CTE is a rather implausible abbreviation for it. However, you never know.

20:54 Mar 30, 2017 

Another possibility for this one, in the context of MRI, is "contraste"; CTE is often used for that. I don't know how that would fit in with PTE though. If they injected a contrast agent for the imaging, I think patient consent would have been required, but I've no idea whether that could be relevant.

19:21 Mar 30, 2017 

"Procedente de consultas externas" is also an option. It's a term used often in the Spanish health system.

19:03 Mar 30, 2017 

Thank you Joe for your input on this conundrum. In answer to your queries, no, these 2 abbreviations are just sitting at the top of the page next to each other and there are no additional clues, either at the top of the page or elsewhere in the document. I don't think it is mission critical to get the expansion, but like you, I want to give each translation my best shot. I like "Consulta Externa" as Lz suggests because the discharge letter accompanying this MRI report makes it clear the patient should report to a doctor back in Holland. I wiwll append a footnote to this effect to the job. Liz, thank you very much for your time and thoughts on this matter.

18:45 Mar 30, 2017 

I enjoy the challenge of figuring out acronyms, and I think it's part of our job to make every effort to root out their meaning before we go to the client. Some abbreviations/acronyms, indeed, are very client-specific and there is NO way that a translator could ever discover their meaning. But there must be some reason that Fernando Navarro has spent innumerable hours creating and maintaining Cosnautas, with its over 30,000 entries; the same goes for Gilberto Lacchia, who created the most comprehensive Italian medical acronym site with over 10,000 entries (Acromed).

That said, it seems quite likely that PTE stands for "paciente". CTE is more of a puzzle to me, and I don't find it in Cosnautas.

Are these two acronyms just sitting at the top of the page, next to each other? Is there any information or entry given with each (or either) of these? Is there anything further in the report that looks like it goes with the initials CTE?

18:38 Mar 30, 2017 

PTE could = paciente
CTE could = cliente externa
Orientación para pacientes de Consulta Externa - Hospital Infantil de ...
himfg.com.mx/descargas/documentos/.../Consultaexterna.pdf
Translate this page
para pacientes de. Consulta Externa www.himfg.edu.mx. Un México sano es un México Fuerte. DIRECTORIO. Director General. Dr. José Alberto García Aranda.

18:20 Mar 30, 2017 

PTE = Patient; CTE = Client. But I don't do abbreviations except the most bog standard common ones. I have a collaboration agreement for clients which stipulates that they are responsible for any undefined acronyms in their texts that may slow down the translation process. If I had to spend precious time on researching every mysterious acronym that came my way, I wouldn't be able to service all my clients the way I do now. Horses for courses :-)