Nursing diagnosis

Nursing diagnosis is a clinical judgment about individual, family, or community experiences/responses to actual or potential health problems/life processes. Nursing diagnoses are developed based on data obtained during the nursing assessment and enable the nurse to develop the care plan.

Definition

The North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA) defines a nursing diagnosis as a clinical judgment about individual, family, or community responses to actual or potential health problems or life processes which provide the basis for selection of nursing interventions to achieve outcomes for which the nurse is accountable.

Types of Nursing Diagnoses

According to NANDA, the nursing diagnoses can be divided into three categories:

1. Problem-focused nursing diagnoses are clinical judgments about an individual, family, or community’s response to actual health problems or life processes which occur in a person’s life. These diagnoses are based on the presence of associated signs and symptoms.
2. Risk nursing diagnoses are clinical judgments that an individual, family, or community is more vulnerable to develop the problem than others in the same or similar situation.
3. Health promotion nursing diagnoses are clinical judgments about a person’s, family’s or community’s motivation and desire to increase well-being and to reach the best possible health potential.

Development of Nursing Diagnoses

The development of a nursing diagnosis is based on the collection of the patient's medical history, physical examination, and diagnostic tests. The nurse uses critical thinking skills to interpret the data collected, leading to the formulation of the nursing diagnosis.

Importance of Nursing Diagnoses

Nursing diagnoses provide the basis for the selection of nursing interventions to achieve outcomes for which the nurse is accountable. They help to focus the scope of nursing practice and provide uniformity and continuity of care.

See Also

• Nursing process
• Nursing care plan
• Nursing assessment
• North American Nursing Diagnosis Association

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