NURSING THEORY EXAM QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS
What can nurses use theories and models to do? - Answer- ■ Collect, organize, and
classify client data
■ Understand, analyze, and interpret clients' health situations
■ Guide formulation of nursing diagnoses
■ Plan, implement, and evaluate nursing care
■ Explain nursing actions and interactions with clients
■ Describe, explain, and sometimes predict clients' responses
■ Demonstrate responsibility and accountability for nursing actions
■ Achieve desired outcomes for clients
Why might nurses not be using nursing theories in practice? - Answer- they do not
know about them, understand them, believe in them, or know how to apply them, or
because they are not allowed to use them
Describe Assessment - Answer- An ongoing process of data collection to determine
the client's strengths and health concerns
• Collect relevant client data by observation, examination, interview and history, and
reviewing the records
• Distinguish relevant data from irrelevant
• Distinguish important data from unimportant
• Validate data with others
What is the nursing process use of assessment? - Answer- • Describes how to
collect data
What is the nursing model use of assessment? - Answer- • Guides which data to
collect
Describe Diagnosis - Answer- The analysis/synthesis of data to identify patterns and
compare with norms and models
A clear, concise statement of the client's health status and concerns appropriate for
nursing intervention
• Organize and categorize data into patterns
• Identify data gaps
• Recognize patterns and relationships in data
• Compare patterns with norms and theories
• Examine own assumptions regarding client's situation
• Make inferences and judgments of client's health concerns
• Define the health concern and validate with the client and healthteam members
• Describe actual and potential concerns and the etiology of each diagnosis
• Propose alternative explanations of concerns
, What is the nursing process use of diagnosis? - Answer- • Describes how to process
data
• Provides format for nursing diagnosis
• Describes how to plan
• Facilitates development of care plan unique to client
What is the nursing model of diagnosis? - Answer- • Guides organizing, categorizing,
and interpreting data
• Provides concepts for nursing diagnosis
• Guides what to plan
• Designates appropriate types of nursing interventions
Describe Planning - Answer- Determination of how to assist the client in resolving
concerns related to restoration, maintenance, or promotion of health
• Identify priority of client's concerns
• Determine client's desired health outcomes
• Select appropriate nursing interventions by generalizing principles and theories
• Transfer knowledge from other sciences
• Design plan of care with scientific rationale
Describe Implementation - Answer- Carrying out the plan of care by the client and
nurse
• Apply knowledge to perform interventions
• Compare baseline datawith changing status
• Test hypotheses of nursing interventions
• Update and revise the care plan
• Collaborate with health team members
What is the nursing process use of implementation? - Answer- Describes phases of
implementation
What is the nursing model use of implementation? - Answer- Directs model-specific
nursing actions
Describe Evaluation - Answer- Asystematic, continuous process of comparing the
client's response with the desired health outcomes
• Compare client's responses with desired health outcomes
• Use criterion-based tools to evaluate
• Determine the client's level of progress
• Revise the plan of care
Describe the nursing process of evaluation - Answer- Identifies how to evaluate
Describe the nursing model of evaluation - Answer- Guides what to evaluate
AND ANSWERS
What can nurses use theories and models to do? - Answer- ■ Collect, organize, and
classify client data
■ Understand, analyze, and interpret clients' health situations
■ Guide formulation of nursing diagnoses
■ Plan, implement, and evaluate nursing care
■ Explain nursing actions and interactions with clients
■ Describe, explain, and sometimes predict clients' responses
■ Demonstrate responsibility and accountability for nursing actions
■ Achieve desired outcomes for clients
Why might nurses not be using nursing theories in practice? - Answer- they do not
know about them, understand them, believe in them, or know how to apply them, or
because they are not allowed to use them
Describe Assessment - Answer- An ongoing process of data collection to determine
the client's strengths and health concerns
• Collect relevant client data by observation, examination, interview and history, and
reviewing the records
• Distinguish relevant data from irrelevant
• Distinguish important data from unimportant
• Validate data with others
What is the nursing process use of assessment? - Answer- • Describes how to
collect data
What is the nursing model use of assessment? - Answer- • Guides which data to
collect
Describe Diagnosis - Answer- The analysis/synthesis of data to identify patterns and
compare with norms and models
A clear, concise statement of the client's health status and concerns appropriate for
nursing intervention
• Organize and categorize data into patterns
• Identify data gaps
• Recognize patterns and relationships in data
• Compare patterns with norms and theories
• Examine own assumptions regarding client's situation
• Make inferences and judgments of client's health concerns
• Define the health concern and validate with the client and healthteam members
• Describe actual and potential concerns and the etiology of each diagnosis
• Propose alternative explanations of concerns
, What is the nursing process use of diagnosis? - Answer- • Describes how to process
data
• Provides format for nursing diagnosis
• Describes how to plan
• Facilitates development of care plan unique to client
What is the nursing model of diagnosis? - Answer- • Guides organizing, categorizing,
and interpreting data
• Provides concepts for nursing diagnosis
• Guides what to plan
• Designates appropriate types of nursing interventions
Describe Planning - Answer- Determination of how to assist the client in resolving
concerns related to restoration, maintenance, or promotion of health
• Identify priority of client's concerns
• Determine client's desired health outcomes
• Select appropriate nursing interventions by generalizing principles and theories
• Transfer knowledge from other sciences
• Design plan of care with scientific rationale
Describe Implementation - Answer- Carrying out the plan of care by the client and
nurse
• Apply knowledge to perform interventions
• Compare baseline datawith changing status
• Test hypotheses of nursing interventions
• Update and revise the care plan
• Collaborate with health team members
What is the nursing process use of implementation? - Answer- Describes phases of
implementation
What is the nursing model use of implementation? - Answer- Directs model-specific
nursing actions
Describe Evaluation - Answer- Asystematic, continuous process of comparing the
client's response with the desired health outcomes
• Compare client's responses with desired health outcomes
• Use criterion-based tools to evaluate
• Determine the client's level of progress
• Revise the plan of care
Describe the nursing process of evaluation - Answer- Identifies how to evaluate
Describe the nursing model of evaluation - Answer- Guides what to evaluate
