POLST
Medical abbreviation · Emergency Medicine
| Stands for | Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment |
|---|---|
| Categories | Medical |
POLST stands for Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, an emergency medicine abbreviation.
Portable medical order form for seriously ill or frail patients that records decisions about CPR, level of medical intervention and artificial nutrition. Signed by a clinician, it is honored by EMS and across care settings.
Example: Bright pink POLST on refrigerator: DNR, selective treatment, no feeding tube.
Usage notes
The program began in Oregon in 1991 and has spread to nearly every state, sometimes under other names such as MOLST, MOST or POST. Unlike an advance directive, it is an actionable medical order, not a statement of wishes. It is meant for people expected to die within about a year, not healthy adults.
Related abbreviations
More emergency medicine abbreviations
- PCR – Patient care report
- PEARS – Pediatric Emergency Assessment, Recognition and Stabilization
- PECARN – Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network
- PEM – Pediatric emergency medicine
- PERC – Pulmonary Embolism Rule-out Criteria
- PHTLS – Prehospital Trauma Life Support
- POV – Privately owned vehicle
- PSAP – Public safety answering point
- qSOFA – Quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment
- ROSC – Return of spontaneous circulation
- RSI – Rapid sequence intubation
- RTS – Revised Trauma Score
See all 97 emergency medicine abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.