Nursing diagnosis is the nurse’s clinical judgment about a patient’s response to actual or potential health conditions or needs.
Medical Diagnosis vs Nursing Diagnosis
| Medical Diagnosis… | Nursing Diagnosis… |
| points to a particular disease or medical condition | focuses on the patient’s needs |
| is based on the physiological or medical condition | focuses on the patient’s physiological and/or psychological response to changes in health |
| is also concerned with the aetiology of the disease | addresses potential problems |
Types of diagnosis include:
- Actual Diagnosis – diagnosis of the problem/s present at the time of patient assessment
- Potential Diagnosis – diagnosis of a potential problem which may arise from the patient’s actual diagnosis
- Health Promotion Diagnosis – diagnosis in relation to altered behaviours towards healthy living
NANDA’s Nursing Diagnoses
NANDA International, officially founded in 1982 and previously known as the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association, is a professional organisation of nurses aiming to standardise nursing terminology.
The current structure of NANDA’s nursing diagnoses is referred to as Taxonomy II and has three levels: Domains (13), Classes (47) and Diagnoses (237) (Herdman & Kamitsuru, 2018).
Models of Nursing Care
- Activities of Daily Living
- Adaptation
- Self Care
- Goal Attainment
Activities of Daily Living
Roy’s Adaptation Model
Orem’s Theory of Self Care
King’s Goal Attainment Model
Nursing Diagnosis Care Plan – Based on the ADL
| Activities of Daily Living | Assessment | Diagnosis | Implementation | Evaluation |
| Maintaining a safe environment | ||||
| Communication | ||||
| Breathing | ||||
| Eating & Drinking | ||||
| Elimination | ||||
| Washing & Dressing | ||||
| Controlling Temperature | ||||
| Mobilisation | ||||
| Working & Playing | ||||
| Sexuality | ||||
| Sleeping | ||||
| Death | ||||
| Education | ||||
| Discharge |
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