Nursing Outcomes: State of the Science

Nursing Outcomes: State of the Science is an invaluable resource for nurse researchers, scholars, and health care professionals committed to effective, quality nursing care as evidenced by nursing-sensitive outcomes measurement. This text concentrates on outcome indicators which focus on how patients and their conditions are affected by their interaction with nursing staff. Each chapter includes a concept analysis of the outcome concept; then defining characteristics are identified and a conceptual definition is proposed. Factors that influence the outcome concept are discussed, as well as the consequences for clients' health and well-being. The strength of the evidence is reviewed concerning the sensitivity of the outcome concept to nursing structure variables and nursing/processes interventions. The author offers a comprehensive synthesis of the literature, critically reviews the quality of the evidence, and provides direction for the selection of outcome variables and approaches to measurement.