subective/objective data

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I have a quick question about subjective and objective information when gathering assessment data.

According to our book, subjective data can only be provided by the client. Objective is what you observe or measure.

If the client is unconscious and a family member is giving history, is this considered subjective or objective?

Thanks

hi are there any subjective cues for:

* acromegaly

* gigantism

* cushing's disease

* addison's disease

* diabetes mellitus

it's really hard to formulate subjective cues if you haven't seen a real patient...

i hope you can help me... thank you:o

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
hi are there any subjective cues for:

* acromegaly

* gigantism

* cushing's disease

* addison's disease

* diabetes mellitus

it's really hard to formulate subjective cues if you haven't seen a real patient...

i hope you can help me... thank you:o

a subjective cue is going to be something that the patient says, or speaks, to you. all you need to do is look at the signs and symptoms of these diseases and think about how a patient would express them (tell you) or tell you how they feel about them and you will have your subjective cues.

for example, with cushing's disease, the signs and symptoms are: thinning hair, hirsutism, a buffalo-hump on the back, thin extremities, muscle wasting, muscle weakness, petechiae, ecchymoses, delayed wound healing, swollen ankles, hypertension, central obesity, and acne. you can image a patient with cushing's saying things like "i'm so tired all the time." that is a subjective cue. or, "my feet swell all the time if i am standing at my job all day." that is another subjective cue. it is because the patient is telling you this information, but you cannot see the data yourself--you must take the patient's word that it is happening.

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Specializes in ER/Tele, Med-Surg, Faculty, Urgent Care.
if the patients family tells you things about the patient it is still objective. there is no subjective data if it doesn't come from the patient them self. i think it is okay to say you have no subjective data.

subjective data: information gathered from patient statements; the patients feelings and perceptions. not verifiable by another except by inference.

objective data: information that can be observed by others; free of feelings, perceptions, prejudices.

subjective data is any information that is told to you, it does not matter if it comes from the patient/spouse/family members. it may not be anything you can confirm, so it is subjective. the information can come from a previous charts is sometimes considered subjective (in cases where wrong information has been documented-you want to err on the side of caution) subjective means you can not verify the truthfulness. you are relying on the pt/family to give you past history/dates/surgeries/meds etc.

objective data is data that can be confirmed, they are facts. includes

vital signs, the labs,diagnostic results sucs as xrays.

it is data that can be verified.

when we use the soap note format to document, the s is subjective, includes chief complaint/reason for visit, past medical hx/surgeries/hospitalizations/meds/allergies. next comes the review of systems (ros) where you go through each system (head to toe) all those tedious

questions, have you ever had blah, blah blah for each system there are specific questions you need to ask.

o is for objective data, (vs, ht, weight, bmi, lab results/diagnostic results, physical exam findings. there should never be anything in the objective data that says, "pt states.... if the patient stated something, this information is subjective and gets moved to the subjective section for that particular system.

a is for assesment ( in my assessment class, this was where you put the nursing diagnosis. health care providers usually put a medical dx here.

p- plan- (as in what is the game plan. for my students-here is where the nursing interventions go.)

sailornurse, msn,fnp,bc

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If the patients family tells you things about the patient it is still objective. There is no subjective data if it doesn't come from the patient them self. I think it is okay to say you have no subjective data.

Subjective data: Information gathered from patient statements; the patients feelings and perceptions. Not verifiable by another except by inference.

Objective data: Information that can be observed by others; free of feelings, perceptions, prejudices.

This is quoted from Basic Nursing, Perry and Potter, 6th edition and this is the answer expected on my tests and told to me by my teachers. Other people may have been taught differently, but you all need to go with what your teacher( and textbook) says, they will test you based on their info! Subjective is based on the "Subjects" perceptions...the patients.

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Specializes in ER/Tele, Med-Surg, Faculty, Urgent Care.
This is quoted from Basic Nursing, Perry and Potter, 6th edition and this is the answer expected on my tests and told to me by my teachers. Other people may have been taught differently, but you all need to go with what your teacher( and textbook) says, they will test you based on their info! Subjective is based on the "Subjects" perceptions...the patients.

This forum is for experienced nurses like myself to help students, so I am again replying to you. I am a Family Nurse Practitioner that teaches undergraduate assessment course. You are quoting from a foundations of nursing book, unfortunately the above quote is incorrect. Here is what Bates (one of the classics Physical Assesment texts says:

Since the introduction of the problem-oriented system of recordkeeping, certain terms have gained wide acceptance. Information given by the patient, or possibly by family members or significant others, is called subjective data. Objective data include two kinds of information: Physical findings and laboratory reports.

Hopefully you have an instructor who is an advanced practice nurse who can clarify this point with you.

To reiterate: Subjective data is the reason the patient is at the clinic/er. The past medical history/surgeries meds etc. Anything that is "told" to the examiner is "subjective" data including the review of systems.

30 years of experience, including ER/tele. I am pretty sure I know what I am talking about.:redbeathe

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I have to go with what my teacher says since her questions are the ones I am tested on, so I will agree to disagree..enough said.;)

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"Subjective data are obtained from the client, family, significant others, health care team members, and health records. Objective data are obtained through physical examination, results of diagnostic and laboratory tests, and pertinent nursing and medical literature" (Potter & Perry, p. 284, 2005,).

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I have a quick question about subjective and objective information when gathering assessment data.

According to our book, subjective data can only be provided by the client. Objective is what you observe or measure.

If the client is unconscious and a family member is giving history, is this considered subjective or objective?

Thanks

We are taught that objective information can be "measured."

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This is quoted from Basic Nursing, Perry and Potter, 6th edition and this is the answer expected on my tests and told to me by my teachers. Other people may have been taught differently, but you all need to go with what your teacher( and textbook) says, they will test you based on their info! Subjective is based on the "Subjects" perceptions...the patients.

Whenever I get information from someone other than the patient, I note as such: "Patient's spouse notes that....", "parent states patient....". I took a master's level physical assessment course in my ABSN program (because that's the physical assessment course we had to take), so I am familiar with the Bates text, and we were taught that yes - information from others is subjective, but it's potentially better to signify where the information comes from if the patient is unable to speak for him/herself.

I can see where that is not only confusing, but contradictory. And yes, whoever posted that they have to do what they're being taught is completely correct - as is the more experienced individual (who may or may not have come across effectively).

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Hi,

I'm having trouble deciding if a sore throat is subjective or objective. You technically can see a sore throat when you assess the patient with a tongue blade? But a patient can also tell you their throat is sore...

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I have a quick question about subjective and objective information when gathering assessment data.

According to our book, subjective data can only be provided by the client. Objective is what you observe or measure.

If the client is unconscious and a family member is giving history, is this considered subjective or objective?

Thanks

Great question--I am just studying this now too. There's always someone else who needs the answer to that question you just asked, right?

Thanks!

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Hi,

I'm having trouble deciding if a sore throat is subjective or objective. You technically can see a sore throat when you assess the patient with a tongue blade? But a patient can also tell you their throat is sore...

Its subjective, and here's why: the pt is the only person who can assess their own pain. You can observe redness, but not pain or soreness.

This is a great way to think through some of my answers for tomorrow's exam!

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