Diagnosis

Question 1

What is a nursing diagnosis?

Answer 1

• it is the problems that nurses identify & treat
• diagnosing refers to the reasoning process
• a diagnosis is a statement or conclusion regarding the nature of a phenomenon
• the diagnostic labels are standardized NANDA names

Question 2

What do nurses use to categorize client problems & needs?

Answer 2

Taxonomy. Ex: NANDA

Question 3

What are the steps of nursing diagnosis?

Answer 3

1. Analyze data
2. Identify health problem, risk & strengths
3. Formulate diagnostic statements

Question 4

What are the components of a nursing diagnosis?

Answer 4

• a problem statement or diagnostic label
• Etiology (related factors & risk factors)
• Defining characteristics

Question 5

What are the types of nursing diagnosis?

Answer 5

1. Actual diagnosis
2. Health promotion diagnosis
3. Risk diagnosis
4. A syndrome diagnosis

Question 6

What determines an actual diagnosis?

Answer 6

• the problem presents at the time of assessment
• there’s a presence of associated signs and symptoms

Question 7

What is a health promotion diagnosis?

Answer 7

Preparedness to implement behaviors to improve their health condition

Question 8

What determines a risk diagnosis?

Answer 8

• when the problem doesn’t exist
• when there’s a presence of risk factors

Question 9

What is a syndrome diagnosis?

Answer 9

When the client has several similar nursing diagnosis

Question 10

What are the characteristics of a nursing diagnosis?

Answer 10

• it is a statement of nursing judgement based on education, experience, expertise & license to treat
• describes human response, the client’s physical, sociocultural, psychological, & spiritual responses to an illness or health problem
• changes when the client’s responses change
• Independent nursing functions

Question 11

What is a medical diagnosis?

Answer 11

• it is made by a physician
• refers to a disease process
• remains the same as long as the disease process is present
• dependent nursing functions (physician prescribed therapies & treatments)

Question 12

What is a collaborative problem?

Answer 12

• it uses both independent & dependent interventions
• requires monitoring of client’s condition and prevention of potential complications
• occur when a particular disease or treatment is present

Question 13

What are the steps in the diagnostic process?

Answer 13

1. Analyze data
2. Identify health problems, risks & strengths
3. formulate diagnostic statements

Question 14

Basic two part statement :

Answer 14

Problem (P) : statement of the client’s response
Etiology (E) : factors contributing to or probable causes of the responses

Question 15

Basic three part statement :

Answer 15

Problem (P) : nursing diagnosis label
Etiology (E)
Signs & Symptoms (S) : defining characteristics manifested by the client

Question 16

One part of the statement :

Answer 16

Wellness
Syndrome

Question 17

What are the variations of basic formats for writing a nursing diagnosis ?

Answer 17

• Unknown etiology
• complex factors
• possible
• secondary
• other additions for precision

Question 18

How can we avoid errors in diagnostic reasoning?

Answer 18

1. by verifying data to confirm the accuracy & relevance of the diagnosis
2. build a good knowledge base & acquire clinical experience
3. have a working knowledge of what is normal
4. consult resources
5. base diagnosis on patterns
6. improve critical thinking skills