The nursing process is a standardized plan used by nurses to make sound clinical decisions so they deliver judgments during patient care. It is a scientific format that requires the nurse in charge to think critically so they provide the best patient care. The standard outlines how registered nurses no matter the role, setting or specialty are supposed to behave and perform duties competently. This plan ensures nurses provide the best services to patients competently.
Purpose Of the Nursing Process
The purposes of the nursing process are:
- To create plans to cater for the needs of patients
- It acts as a guideline for nurses to perform their duties in a systematic way
- To assess a patient’s status and identify potential and current problems
- To enhance nursing interventions to cater for the needs of their patients
- To create a patient’s directory indicating their status, response to illness and the management measure
Steps of the nursing process
The nursing process involves 5 broad steps which nurses need to have mastery of to apply in their daily duties. With the help of critical thinking, nurses will be experts with time as they apply these steps daily.
Assessment
This step involves gathering, grouping, justifying and recording a patient’s data. This usually takes place during the first visit where the nurse is supposed to assess and collect data of the patient’s health status. This will help in creating a directory on the response of a patient to health matters.
Types of data
Data can either be verbal, nonverbal, subjective or objective.
- Subjective data: This type of data can only be confirmed by the patient and they include, feelings, sensations or thoughts
- Objective data: This is tangible data that is collected through touch, smell or sight which are later compared to authorized standards such as pressure, temperature and respiratory and pulse rates etc.
- Verbal data: This type of data can either be spoken or written by the patient or a third party. It requires good listening skills so as to capture details such as tone, anxiety and assertiveness.
- Non-verbal data: This data is requires observing the behavior such as gestures, body language and facial expressions.
Diagnosis
This is the second step of the nursing process which involves examining and studying the information collected, pointing out the problem and possible risks and later putting it together as one compilation. Sometimes, multiple diagnosis is done on one patient to get accurate information.
Planning
Planning involves organizing the mode of treatment which may be short or long-term depending on the patient’s condition. The health care professionals and the patient must come into terms with the diagnosis.
Types of planning
The various types of planning are:
- Initial planning: Initial planning is usually done by the same nurse who assessed the patient and is also responsible for creating a comprehensive care plan.
- Progressive planning: This planning is done by any nurse attending to the patient. The assess their response to the care plan and can make changes where necessary.
- Discharge planning: This usually happens when the client is being discharged to determine the care plan after discharge.
Implementing
This process involves the nurses putting into action all the medications and solutions highlighted in the care plan. The actions in the plan include: observing the changes in condition of the patient, administering the prescribed medication, training the patient on proper health management and conducting a follow up.
The implementation processes
The implementation processes are:
- Reexamining the patient to determine whether involvement is still necessary
- Evaluating the situation to determine whether nurses need assistance from other medical professionals
- Implementing the interventions in the nursing care plan.
- Assigning and supervising the relevant interventions in the nursing care plan
- Recording the undertaken activities and patient’s response to the treatment plan
Evaluation
This is the last step of the nursing process which is the most sensitive in ensuring positive results. In this phase, the health care professionals can now tell what is good for the patient and what is not. They must reassess the actions done before to determine whether they got the expected results. The results can be termed as either: improved condition, stable condition or worsened condition.
Evaluation steps
The steps carried out during evaluation are:
- Collection of data: The nurse collects both subjective and objective data to ensure the goals have been met
- Comparison of data: The goals of the care plan are used to determine whether the goal was met, partly met, or not met
- Examine: Examine the response of the patient’s response to the nursing care plan
- Identify underlying factors: Determine the factors leading to the success or failure of the plan
- Solution of the care plan: Decide whether to continue with the nursing care plan. Make modifications or do away with it.
- Plan on the patient’s discharge
Conclusion
The nursing process is a broad process that requires total concentration and cooperation of the nurse to determine its success or failure. the response of the patient to the plan determines their fate of the care plan. The nursing process is a continuous cycle which if the expected results do not reflect, then it has to be reapplied from the beginning. We hope this article has enlightened you on the nursing process and its roles and the steps that are carried out during this process.
FAQs
1. Which is the most important stage of nursing process?
The planning stage is the most important because the expected results are prepared here. Goals are set and the nursing care plan is involved during this stage.
2. What is the major role of nursing process?
To assess the patient’s health condition so as to determine the problem and appropriate plan for their needs.
3. What are the benefits of nursing process?
Benefits include: Enhances quality care for the patient, promote patient safety and promotes unity, teamwork and collaboration amongst healthcare workers
4. What are the characteristics of the nursing process?
The nursing process is: dynamic, goal oriented, patient centered, well planned and organized and based on medical knowledge.