Hi,
I have got some problems with the word "practice" in some contexts.
The sentence is the following: We had research grants from the federal government, as well as a large hospital-based practice that included treating patients who neeeded to have their communications skills evaluated, for instance, after a stroke.
Well, what is practice in this context?
Thank you very, very much for your help.
Best regards,
Elaine Pepe
São Paulo/Brazil
Try definitions 3(a) and 3(b) on m-w.com for 'practice' as a noun.
In this case 'practice' is a doctor's business, and it's a very broad term: it encompasses the place where he works, the people that work with him, and his clients as well.
We also refer to a lawyer's business as his practice, and we describe a doctor's or lawyer's work by saying "he pratices medicine", or "he practices law". I can't think of other occupations that use that term.
Example: (Speaking to a young lawyer) Do you want to work for a big, established firm, or would you rather start your own practice?
(To a doctor): -- How big is your practice?
-- Well, we have three doctors that work here and we see as many as 60 patients a week.
Meaning (3b) on m-w.com is the closest, but I think it'd be hard to understand that definition just from reading it.
"In this case 'practice' is a doctor's business, and it's a very broad term: it encompasses the place where he works, the people that work with him, and his clients as well. "
I'd rather say 'patients', in stead of saying 'clients' , because i mean if it is about a doctor, it doesn't sound good to me when you say his clients,
after that i can not trust him anymore, like he is only doing his business for money or something political maybe :)
Furthermore, i think you can derive the meaning of 'practice' in any usage, because it all means 'doing something regularly and repeatedly',
i mean if it is about doctor or lawyer, it's all the same. Doc does some tests, diagnoses etc.. and he/she does this everyday business.
I think that making a distinction between client and patient is fairly petty.
In this context, yes, it is petty, but if you're the doctor speaking to your clients/patients then you'd want to choose your words carefully.