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Auxiliary
Auxiliary has the following meanings in the field of
medicine:
1. Functioning in a way that adds something to
something or someone else. For example, although the
stomach plays the main role in digestion, the liver an
gallbladder are auxiliary organs that assist in digestion.
The liver is the largest organ in the body and is
responsible for filtering (removing) harmful chemical
substances, producing important chemicals for the
body, and other important functions.
The gallbladder is an auxiliary organ.
FEATURED BOOK: The Gallbladder Survival Guide
The gallbladder is a small, pear shaped sac, located under the liver, which helps store
and transport bile to the first part of the small intestine (known as the duodenum). Bile is a
bitter, yellow-green substance released from the liver that carries away waste products.
2. Functioning in a way that is secondary to something or someone else. This usually
means assisting, supporting, or otherwise helping in some way. For example, in dentistry,
a dentist's assistant is sometimes called an auxiliary. In this sense of the word,
something that is auxiliary is inferior (in a literal manner, not in an offensive manner).
3. An organization that assists, supports, or otherwise helps in the work of a clinical
setting (such as a hospital), usually by supplying volunteers or donations. In some
hospitals, this is known as the Auxiliary Office.
"Where Medical Information is Easy to Understand"™
Examples of roles filled by people working in auxiliary offices includes providing support to patients and
families, relaying messages to families of patients waiting in the surgical area, reception desk jobs,
escorting patients and families, clerical work (e.g., typing, filing, answering the phone), making hospital
deliveries, working in the gift shop, running errands, and distributing reading materials Auxiliary comes
from the Latin word "auxillium" meaning "aid."
