Today our topic of discussion is Nursing Evaluation.
Nursing Evaluation
The last step in the process is evaluation. Evaluation examines the degree of goal attainment and basically asks, “Did the client achieve the goal he or she was supposed to?” and if not why not?
Evaluation begins with collecting data about the client’s health status, closely re-examining the outcome criteria The degree of outcome attainment is determined and a intervention is required on a student care plan or listed revised plan of care is established, if needed .
Evaluation will Answer the Following Questions
- Were the nursing diagnoses accurate?
- Did the patient meet the outcome criteria?
- Have the patient’s nursing problems been resolved?
- Have the patient’s nursing needs been met?
- Should the nursing interventions be retained, altered or discontinued?
- Have new problems evolved for which nursing interventions have not been planned or implemented?
- What factors influenced the achievement or lack of within which nursing care is provided achievement of the goals?
- Do priorities need to be reassigned?
- Should changes be made in the goals and outcome criteria?
Formal Evaluation Models
This type of evaluation can be viewed as informal. There is also a formal method of evaluation through a system called quality assurance.
- Quality assurance is the planned and systematic evaluation of care given to group of clients. The organization most actively involved in formal quality assurance is the joint commission for accreditation of health care organizations
- Quality assurance programs in nursing are viewed as evaluation system composed of three dimensions- structure, process and outcome
- The process dimension: Focuses on patient welfare and end results of the care provided to the patient .
- The structural dimension: Focuses on the organization within which nursing care is provided.
Outcome Criteria
Goals for accountability and quality assurance in nursing are being realized. The American Nurse Association has developed basic standards that provide a general model for nursing practice by which the quality of nursing practice may be evaluated.
Record-keeping has been revised to provide a problem- oriented approach to documentation of data. The use of outcome criteria as validations of the nursing process has become an accepted trend.
The nursing audit has become an accepted method for comparing results of the actual nursing performance with the established criteria.
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