Nursing Care Plans
Paper Masters can help you outline your nursing care plan or write a research paper on the value of a nursing care plan. Nursing students have to understand the nursing care plan and learn how to write them successfully.
Nursing care plans are a set of actions to be undertaken by a nurse in the treatment of a patient. There are several elements that go into the creation of nursing care plans, including:
- Diagnosis
- Risk factors
- Expected outcomes
- Interventions
Such plans are designed to be holistic, realistic, and future-oriented.
Unique Care Plans
Nursing care plans must emerge out of the unique needs of each patient and be marked by a continuity of care. This means that the plan must be updated as the patient's needs are addressed. Importantly, nursing care plans are focused on documentation, specifically outlining what observations need to be made, what actions need to be carried out by nurses, and what, if any instructions need to be given to the patient and his or her family.
While nursing care plans will vary in each professional setting, they are all organized into four categories:
- Diagnosis
- Goal
- Orders
- Evaluation
Nursing diagnosis defines the plan of care for the patient, driving interventions and outcomes. This also allows for clear communication between team members. The goal is what the nurse hopes to achieve through the implementation of the plan. Nursing orders are the specific instructions that will allow a patient to reach the health care goal. Finally, in the evaluation stage, health care professionals will determine how the patient is progressing towards their goal.