Glossary

Short, plain explanations of the abbreviations and terms used across this site.

APC: Annual Practising Certificate — the yearly licence from the Malaysian Medical Council that a registered doctor needs to practise.
CASC: Clinical Assessment of Skills and Competencies — the clinical, station-based part of the MRCPsych exam.
CBT: Cognitive behavioural therapy — a structured talking therapy that works on the links between thoughts, feelings and behaviour.
CGPA: Cumulative grade point average — the overall grade used by matriculation, foundation, STPM and universities.
Consultant: A senior specialist with several years of experience after gazettement, who leads a team, teaches and handles the most complex cases.
CPD: Continuing professional development — ongoing learning that doctors must record to keep their practising certificate.
CPG: Clinical practice guideline — an evidence-based recommendation document; in Malaysia many are published by the Ministry of Health.
Delirium: A sudden, fluctuating state of confusion caused by physical illness, drugs or withdrawal; a medical emergency often seen by psychiatrists.
DSM-5-TR: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, text revision (2022), published by the American Psychiatric Association.
ECT: Electroconvulsive therapy — a treatment given under general anaesthesia for severe depression, catatonia and some other conditions.
Formulation: A short summary that explains why this person developed this problem now, and what keeps it going, using biological, psychological and social factors.
Gazettement: The supervised period after the specialist exams before a doctor is formally recognised as a specialist in the Ministry of Health.
HLP: Hadiah Latihan Persekutuan — Federal Training Award, the Ministry of Health sponsorship commonly used for postgraduate specialist training, with a service bond.
Housemanship: The first two years of supervised work after medical school, as a house officer (HO), rotating through major departments.
ICD-11: International Classification of Diseases, 11th revision, from the World Health Organization; in effect from 2022.
Involuntary admission: Admission to a psychiatric hospital without the person's consent, allowed only under the conditions and safeguards of the Mental Health Act 2001.
Liaison psychiatry: Psychiatry practised in a general hospital for patients with physical illness — also called consultation-liaison psychiatry.
Matriculation: The Ministry of Education's one- or two-year pre-university programme (Program Matrikulasi) leading to public university entry.
MBBS / MD: The basic medical degree (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, or Doctor of Medicine); typically five years in Malaysia.
Medical officer (MO): A fully registered doctor working after housemanship, under the overall responsibility of specialists.
Mental Health Act 2001: Act 615, the Malaysian law on admission, detention, treatment and care of people with mental disorder, with the Mental Health Regulations 2010.
Mental state examination (MSE): The structured description of a person's appearance, behaviour, speech, mood, thoughts, perceptions, cognition and insight at the time of interview.
MMC: Malaysian Medical Council — the body that registers doctors and recognises medical qualifications under the Medical Act 1971.
MMed (Psychiatry): Master of Medicine in Psychiatry (names vary by university) — the Malaysian clinical specialist training programme, typically four years.
MOH: Ministry of Health Malaysia (Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia, KKM).
MRCPsych: Membership of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (UK), gained by passing Paper A, Paper B and the CASC.
MUET: Malaysian University English Test, run by the Malaysian Examinations Council; public university medicine typically expects a high band.
Neurotransmitter: A chemical messenger between nerve cells, such as dopamine, serotonin, noradrenaline, glutamate or GABA.
NSR: National Specialist Register — the register of specialists kept under the Malaysian Medical Council; specialists must be on it to practise as such.
OSCE: Objective structured clinical examination — a station-based practical exam with actors or real patients.
Paper A: MRCPsych written paper on the scientific and theoretical basis of psychiatry.
Paper B: MRCPsych written paper on critical review (research appraisal) and clinical topics.
Part I / Part II: The two main examinations of the Malaysian master's in psychiatry: Part I on basic sciences early in training, Part II clinical exam and dissertation at the end.
PBL: Problem-based learning — small-group learning built around patient cases.
Phenomenology: The careful description of a patient's subjective experiences (e.g. hallucinations, delusions) without assuming their cause.
Psychopharmacology: The science of how medicines act on the brain and mind, and their side effects.
Psychosis: A state in which a person loses contact with shared reality, for example through hallucinations or delusions.
rTMS: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation — a non-invasive brain stimulation treatment used mainly for depression.
SPM: Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia — the national exam at the end of secondary school (Form 5).
STPM: Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia — the national pre-university exam (Form 6).
Subspecialty: A narrower field within psychiatry (e.g. child and adolescent, forensic, addiction, old age, consultation-liaison) with its own fellowship training.
UPU: Unit Pengambilan Universiti — the central admissions system for Malaysian public universities.
WPBA: Workplace-based assessment — observed real work (case discussions, observed interviews) used to judge a trainee's progress.