Hi! Okay please understand I mean NO disrespect...I myself want to be a nurse and am taking prereqs to get into a program!!
I was looking at some of the textbooks used in the nursing program earlier today. One was about care plans, and it had something in it called "nursing diagnosis."
I guess i'm just confused. I was under the impression that staff nurses didn't diagnose, they carried out doctor's orders. I was under the impression that staff nurses needed an understanding of how the body works and the science behind the human body in order to catch any errors the doctor might make and to know when to alert the doctor of a change in patient's condition (I mean, you have to for example know what a normal heart rate should be under xxx conditions to know that it is abnormal to notify the doctor, for example). I was under the impression that a nurse needed a doctor's order to give a patient even tylenol (which I don't agree with at all but was under the impression that's how things went).
I don't mean any disrespect....just trying to clarify what the role of the nursing diagnosis is.
If someone could clarify my thought process or explain it better, I would sincerely appreciate it.
It's very important for getting through nursing school, so don't listen to all this commentary. Take it very seriously. You can deride it after graduation.
anonymurse
979 Posts
It's very important for getting through nursing school, so don't listen to all this commentary. Take it very seriously. You can deride it after graduation.