A german doctor working on a free EMR asked me:
I am looking for a compound noun which describes drugs/a
drug expected to be taken perpetually, such as hypertensive
agents.
In German we say "Dauermedikament". A literal translation
could be "permanent medication".
At my suggestion – which is "ongoing medication" – he asked
Is there much danger of confusion with "Current medication"?
My answer would be no, but I figured best to run past people who
would come at this question more blindly. To me, current
medications would include those that may be intended to be stopped
(such as a course of antibiotics or anti-inflammatories). To me,
current medications would consist of:
- short-term
- ongoing
plus, of course, "not intended to be ongoing, despite that somehow
the patient has continued it, or ended up back on it"
Does the concept better need some term better than "ongoing"?