"Non-compliant" isn't a word most of us use in common speech, but it shows up a lot in medical charts. It's jargon, a kind of shorthand that doctors, counsellors and other medical professionals use to describe their patients. It can mean anything from "the patient isn't taking their medication properly" to "they don't show up for appointments."
It may also be a sign of a communication breakdown between clinician and patient that could lead to poor care and serious mental health outcomes, according to Mallory Minerson.
Minerson is a PhD candidate in psychiatry at U of A who works as the regional clinical supervisor for mental health and addictions for the Beaufort Delta region of the Northwest Territories, which includes the northern coastal area of NWT and the territory's High Arctic islands.
