how to write a nursing education plan

Effective Tips for writing a good Patient Teaching/Education Plan

How do I write a teaching plan for nursing? If this question bothers you, then you are in luck. Patient education is critical in aiding positive patient outcomes and ensuring maximum independence. Nurses play a significant role in patient education by utilizing nursing teaching plans to provide the necessary information to patients to manage their health conditions. A detail-oriented nursing education plan informs patients, improves their understanding of their medical condition, and helps them make the best decisions about their health. As a nursing student, you must learn how to write a teaching plan so that you can communicate well with patients about their medical issues.

In this guide, we will define a nursing teaching plan, show you the steps for creating a teaching plan for a patient, and give tips for writing an impactful teaching plan.

What is a Teaching Plan in Nursing?

A nurse-teaching or patient education plan guides patients about a particular medical issue. In other words, it is a way for nurses to teach patients about their illnesses so that they can know how to take medication and manage their disease.

These plans are necessary for informing patients without medical backgrounds what to do when they are not close to their doctors. They identify a patient's current needs and acknowledge the possible risks. The goal is to achieve long-lasting behavioural changes by providing relevant knowledge to allow patients to make autonomous decisions about their health.

Nurse teaching plans are vital in patient education as they are used to achieve the best care plan for patients. Usually, both nurses and nursing students use these teaching plans to learn more about a particular illness. They can make better decisions concerning a diagnosis, impending surgery, medications, and treatment options.

A well-thought-out patient teaching plan is an effective way for nurses to teach patients instead of communicating information without a plan.

What Should A Nursing Teaching Plan Include

A good teaching plan must include the following:

• Purpose of the lesson.
• The overall goal of the lesson.
• Objectives for achieving the goals.
• Lesson outline.
• Instrumental methods that show how you plan to teach the lesson.
• Timeline for achieving the objective.
• Instrumental resources for achieving the identified objectives.
• How do you evaluate whether the objectives are working?

These are all crucial elements that will help

How to Create a Nursing Teaching Plan

Research shows that a well-thought-out teaching plan significantly improves patient outcomes and saves lives. For this reason, you must learn how to create an effective teaching plan. The following are the steps for creating an effective teaching plan for nursing.

Come up with the Goals of the Teaching Plan

Figuring out how to write a patient teaching plan is challenging, so setting a goal to guide you through every step is necessary. Remember, a lesson plan outlines teaching goals, learning objectives, and how you intend to accomplish them.

An effective and productive nursing teaching plan differs from one in which everything goes well but in which both the teacher and student gain something from it.

Start by deciding what medical issues, such as surgery or treatment ideas, will be the basis for the teaching plan. Then, decide what you want the nursing plan to fulfill.

For example, if you are teaching a diabetic patient, the goal would be to inform them how they would be taking regular insulin injections. Ensure the goals are measurable, realistic, achievable, and relevant to the patient's medical condition.

Find Out What Works Best

Ask the patient how they learn best so that you can match their style. If you don’t know how to go about this, consider asking, "The last time you learned about something new easily, how was it taught?" If they prefer visuals or jotting things down, make sure you make it possible for them. This is necessary for delivering medical information in a way that the patient can understand.

The most common way to teach patients is using visual components and auditorily. Thus, it's best to include images, graphs, and diagrams in your nursing if they prefer visuals. If they prefer auditory, it's best to read to them out loud or provide a recording device they can use whenever.

Assess Patient's Knowledge

Apart from knowing how patients learn best, it's important that you also assess their medical knowledge. This will then help you know how to write a nursing teaching plan that works well. If they don't understand medical concepts, you may have to find more information in the teaching plan to make it easy for them to grasp what you intend to teach them. You can achieve this by asking the following questions:

• Have you had any health-related issues related to your current condition?
• Do you truly understand your current health condition?
• Have you ever been given a teaching plan before?
• On a scale of 1-10, Please rate your medical condition.

The answers to these questions will help you judge a patient's knowledge of medical concepts. Nurses play a big role in identifying and addressing patients' knowledge deficits, which any of the following could cause:

• Limited access to education - Some patients may need help obtaining educational resources or internet access to understand even the simplest terms.
• Health illiteracy - Not being health literate could make it difficult for one to understand medical terminologies. The reading level for all material should be between 3rd and 5th grade.
• Poor communication - When key information is miscommunicated, patients will miss what they should know.
• Cognitive impairment - those with cognitive impairment, such as intellectual disability, will struggle to process information. Your target should be between 3-5 pieces of information at a time.
• Emotional distress - patients experiencing high emotional stress, such as anxiety, may be unable to focus or understand information when it is shared.
• Language barrier - Nurses and patients will experience difficulty communicating. Patients will also have difficulty understanding important information. If your patient’s primary language differs from English, find an interpreter to translate the resources for effective learning.

As a nurse, you should know all the causes of knowledge deficit to communicate well with the patients. Knowledge deficit refers to a lack of the necessary information to understand and process an illness and treatment options, thus impeding a patient's ability to make informed decisions aligning with their health.

Also, ensure you know all the patient's needs and concerns before teaching them. This means you should be aware of all their issues and key details of the after-care plan.

For example, a patient may have been given prescription medication by their therapist to take at home.

At the same time, they may be required to do some exercises according to their physical therapist. Therefore, it's imperative that you keenly evaluate theory ability to understand what you will be teaching them.

Please note that some patients may struggle to understand even the simplest information because of a mental issue. So, it's best to know this before you begin teaching them.

Create an Outline

Now that you have figured out the patient's learning style and knowledge of medical concepts, you need to develop an outline of what information you will deliver. Use either an online template or create one. Include the following in the outline:

• Short and long-term goals that you would want the patient to achieve.
• Patient medical information.
• Strategies for achieving the goals.

Include the patient through every step by sharing information to make them feel they are in control of their health.

Write Clear Instructions

Write down clearly what you expect the patients to do. Explain when, where, and how you want the patient to complete the task.

Don't beat around the bush. Make sure every information you are sharing is as specific as possible. For instance, if your teaching plan is about chemotherapy treatment, include details of when they should come, how many times they should come in a month, and the side effects of the treatment. Other information you should add:

• Predicted outcomes
• Alternative strategies
• Resources for medical help
• Medications
• Exercise strategies
• Nutrition information

 All this information is necessary to understand the patient's medical condition comprehensively.

Provide information in Small Chunks.

It’s essential to share information with patients in a way that they can understand. For this reason, sharing information in smaller, more manageable, and meaningful chunks is necessary so that you don’t overwhelm them. Therefore, it breaks down complex phrases and sentences into smaller sections that are easy to process.

Before moving to the next section, ensure the previous one is easy to digest. In addition, make it easy for patients to ask for information about what they do not understand and provide clarification when needed.

Create a Glossary of the Medical Terms

Patient information must be written and communicated in a way that is easy for patients to understand. Medical terms refer to words and phrases that are used specifically in healthcare. Including a glossary list ensures that patients can refer to terms they do not understand. A glossary of terms is crucial to the success of the nursing teaching plan because some medical terms are extremely complex, especially for patients without any medical background.

Provide Relevant Copies of the Material

Increase your chances of success by providing relevant material and the teaching plan. This could be information about health facilities pamphlets, contact information for emergency clinics, and information about specialists.

Also, customize and print the resources instead of just handing the patient a stack of papers. The teaching plan should address their plans.

Additionally, before being discharged, repeat the plan with the patients to ensure they understand it. Some of these resources are valuable in multiple languages, so you can find the one suitable for your patients to make it easier for them to understand the information.

Evaluate the Outcome of the Teaching Plan

Check-in with the patient occasionally to know how well they follow the teaching plan. If they are having difficulties, offer to show them again or adjust the mode of information delivery.

Also, consider reviewing the teaching plan once more to know whether information could confuse the patient. If there are, consider simplifying the questions.

You may be forced to reteach the information once more through different methods. So, modify the nursing education plan until the main objective is achieved, which is learning.

Use the following steps to evaluate the patient outcomes:

• Use a teach-back strategy- Ask the patient to explain what they have learned in their own words. The aim is not to test them but to know whether they described the information in a way that meets their learning needs. Use the following questions to implement the teach-back strategy:
• “How you will….”
• “What are you going to do if…."
• “How would you explain….”
• As they answer, encourage accurate responses and respectfully clarify any gaps.
• Encourage return demonstration. Evaluate how well they can demonstrate through kill performance. As they do this, gently correct any mishaps.
• Measure a change in patient outcomes- Measure how they adhere to the self-management plan through tools such as questionnaires, symptom logs, etc. Likewise, consider checking readmission rates and verify whether they have adhered to the treatment by checking lab reports.

Tips for Success

The following are some tips to increase your chance of success when using a nursing teaching plan to educate your patients.

Anticipate Questions

Before you begin teaching the patients, you must anticipate any questions or concerns they might have. This will help you act on them and prepare adequately for the lesson.

For instance, if you teach a parent of a child with high blood pressure, you might anticipate a question like, why does a young child have high blood pressure?

Prepare a teaching plan that addresses the fact that high blood pressure in children is a common result of kidney problems.

Involve the patient's Family.

Patients’ family involvement in a patient education plan is critical as it impacts the quality of care and patient outcomes. It also improves their mental health and motivates them to follow the teaching plan.

Family involvement will ensure that the patients get the help they need to follow through with the teaching plan. If they cannot come, arrange to speak to them by phone or email.

Stimulate Patient’s Interest

Patient interest is necessary for them to learn and follow through with the teaching plan. The best way to stimulate this interest is by first building a rapport, asking questions, being respectful, and considering their concerns. i

f your patient prefers detailed information about a particular concept, provide it to them. If they prefer facts, ensure that you also offer them.

Final Word 

Creating an impressive nursing teaching plan is necessary to ensure patients take a proactive role in their health. For this reason, you must know how to write it well. Including clear objectives and implementing the appropriate teaching methods will ensure that patients learn everything they need. The above tips will help you create an impactful nursing teaching plan.

Are you struggling to figure out how to write a teaching plan for a patient? Whether it is a Flyer, Poster, or Word document, you can get assignment help here at Nursemygrade.com.

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Nursing Teaching Plan| Format, Template, & Example

Nurses educate patients about their health condition, treatment strategies, and how to recover from it. Developing a nursing teaching plan is the first step to educating patients and their families about their conditions, self-care, and other medical needs.

Creating a successful teaching plan can be both rewarding and challenging as it requires careful consideration of unique learning needs and the complex nature of healthcare. This article explains what a teaching plan is, how to create one, effective tips, templates, and examples.

What is a nurse teaching plan?

A nurse teaching plan is an education strategy tailored to convey crucial skills and health information to patients, their families, or the community. Nurses use teaching plans to inform patients about medical information to manage their treatment plans after leaving a healthcare facility. Teaching plans involve assessing individuals learning needs and formulating certain teaching objectives to address those needs.

A nurse may use a teaching plan to;

• Motivate patients to make a change in their lifestyle
• Help patients make informed decisions about surgery or treatment plan
• Teach patient to administer injections and medication on their own
• Explain information about treatment plans and medications

A well-developed nurse teaching plan utilizes evidence-based practice and considers the target audience’s cognitive, linguistic, and cultural differences. By utilizing various educational tools such as interactive discussions, demonstrations, and visual aids, nurses can engage their audiences and promote better health outcomes.

Tips for creating a nurse teaching plan

A nurse teaching plan aims to provide individuals with the knowledge to make informed decisions about their health and manage it effectively. Below are valuable tips to keep in mind while developing a teaching plan;

• Assess the progress regularly through skill demonstration, quizzes, or other evaluation forms to ensure the teaching plan achieves its objectives effectively.
• Ask for feedback from individuals during the teaching process to address any confusion or concern and gauge their understanding.
• Consider the time constraints and plan the teaching session well. Allocate sufficient time for questions and discussions and prioritize essential content.
• Create a good learning environment where individuals can feel comfortable sharing their experiences and asking questions. Using open-ended questions can be best to encourage critical thinking and discussion.
• Encourage teamwork and collaboration to promote learning experience and sharing of diverse perspectives.
• Incorporate real-life examples and scenarios to help individuals understand
• Define the learning objective of your teaching lesson to ensure you meet them
• Tailor the teaching plan to the specific needs of the patient
• Keep the family involved and explain the teaching plan to them.

How do you write a teaching plan for a patient?

As a nurse, you should carefully structure your plan to deliver significant information to patients in a way they can understand well. Below are steps for writing a teaching plan for a patient;

• Decide on the goal of the teaching plan

First, determine the goal of the teaching plan. For example, your goal may be to encourage a patient to change their diet and work out. Understanding your goal at the beginning will guide you in every step of developing your plan.

• Evaluate the patient’s medical knowledge

Delivering medical information to patients in terms they can understand is essential. Evaluating their medical knowledge will help you decide how to write your teaching plan. If your patient does not understand relevant medical concepts, provide more details when writing your plan.

• Identify your patient’s learning style

It’s essential to understand how your patient prefers to learn. Ask your patients if certain variables may affect their learning, like visual or hearing impairments. If your patients prefer listening, you can read to them loud or give them an audio recording. If they prefer learning visually, include diagrams, graphs, and images in your plan.

• Develop an outline of the main goals and information

Develop an outline of the main information you want to deliver and the goals you want your patient to achieve. You can look for a template of a teaching plan online or create your own. List relevant medical information, identify useful methods for the patients to reach their goals, and offer achievable timelines for the goals.

• Compose the instructions

Once you have a detailed outline, write instructions describing the task the patients should complete. Be sure to include information that explains where, when, and how they should complete the task. Include the following information in the written teaching plan;

• Resources for medical help
• Alternative strategies
• Predicted outcomes
• Nutrition information
• Exercise strategies
• Medications
• Diagnosis information
• Include a glossary for medical terms

Including a glossary explaining medical terms will help your patients understand the information you have included in your teaching plan. Some medical concepts are complex hence a glossary is vital to the efficacy of the plan.

• Prepare copies of resources and materials

Including copies of relevant resources and materials can boost your plan’s success. Resources may include referrals to specialists, emergency phone numbers, or pamphlets on health care facilities. Be sure to give your patients at least two copies of the written teaching plan.

• Evaluate the outcomes of the plan

Check with your patient to determine how closely they are following your teaching plan and its effects. You can adjust your plan if the patient is struggling to follow. If some parts are confusing, reformat them to simple terms and exclude non-essential information.

How to write a lesson plan in nursing?

A lesson plan is a document for planning how you will achieve the objectives or the goals of the lesson. It provides an understanding of what to teach, how to teach and evaluate, and the time for each objective. A lesson plan should include a content outline, goals, objectives, purpose, time to cover the objectives, resources, methods of teaching, and evaluation methods.

Below is an example of a lesson plan template to help you develop your teaching plan;

What is the best way to teach nursing students?

Below are the best strategies for teaching nursing students;

• Integrating new technologies

Nursing educators can integrate tools to administer quizzes and platforms for tracking processes in class.

• Being flexible

Nurse educators should be flexible to adjust their methods or schedules when unforeseen situations occur. This allows students to be flexible in juggling their coursework.

• Being consistent

Nurse educators should be fully engaged during class sessions and actively encourage discussions.

• Developing a comfortable teaching style

Nurse educators must create a teaching style that allows them to convey information while building a strong rapport with students. Educators can find it comfortable lecturing, facilitating discussion, or involving students in other ways.

• Incorporating cultural competencies

Nurse educators should incorporate cultural competence in teaching and provide nursing students with the skills they need to ensure equal and proper care to all patients.

• Developing clinical working strategies

Students require exposure to real-world practices. Educators should ensure that students can get experience at hospitals or practicum settings.

• Developing a structured itineracy

Nurse educators should provide students with a structured itinerary. This will bring discipline and order in-class sessions and ensure the long-term goals of the class.

What are the methods of teaching in nursing education?

In nursing education , various methods of teaching are used to prepare students for challenges in healthcare practice and meet diverse student’s learning needs. Teaching methods enhance learning if they are appropriate for the client’s needs. The following are common methods used in nursing education;

Lectures are explanation methods of teaching that are accompanied by discussions. Discussions allow learners to express their concerns, and feelings, receive clarification, and ask questions.

• Peer teaching

Students can teach certain subjects to their peers which promotes collaborative learning and improve understanding.

• Clinical rounds

Clinical rounds are supervised clinical visits to healthcare facilities.

• Self-directed learning

Self-directed learning is where students take responsibility for their learning process.

• Flipped classrooms

Flipped classrooms are pre-recorded lectures provided for self-study before class and used for problem-solving, application, and discussions.

• Online learning

Online learning uses e-learning and digital platforms. It enhances flexibility in learning especially for theory-based content.

• Clinical labs

Clinical labs are controlled environments where students refine and practice clinical skills. It includes skills assessments, hands-on practice, and demonstrations.

• Group discussions

Group discussions allow the exchange of ideas, development of communication skills, and collaboration. The discussions help students to have open discussions.

• Clinical practicum

Clinical practicum allows students to work with actual patients, creating practical skills. It helps students apply theory in a clinical setting.

• Simulation-based learning

Simulation-based learning provides hands-on practice in a controlled environment. It involves realistic scenarios using virtual simulations.

Wrapping up

Patient education empowers individuals with the information they need to make informed decisions regarding their health and manage their conditions. You should carefully structure your plan to deliver significant information to patients in a way they can understand well. Learning how to develop a nursing teaching plan is essential and will help you communicate essential information to your patients. Utilize this comprehensive guide to effectively develop an impactful teaching plan to engage your patients and students.

Nursing Care Plans (NCP) Ultimate Guide and List

Writing the  best   nursing care plan  requires a step-by-step approach to complete the parts needed for a care plan correctly. This tutorial will walk you through developing a care plan. This guide has the ultimate database and list of nursing care plans (NCP) and nursing diagnosis samples  for our student nurses and professional nurses to use—all for free! Care plan components, examples, objectives, and purposes are included with a detailed guide on writing an excellent nursing care plan or a template for your unit. 

Table of Contents

Standardized care plans, individualized care plans, purposes of a nursing care plan, three-column format, four-column format, student care plans, step 1: data collection or assessment, step 2: data analysis and organization, step 3: formulating your nursing diagnoses, step 4: setting priorities, short-term and long-term goals, components of goals and desired outcomes, types of nursing interventions, step 7: providing rationale, step 8: evaluation, step 9: putting it on paper, basic nursing and general care plans, surgery and perioperative care plans, cardiac care plans, endocrine and metabolic care plans, gastrointestinal, hematologic and lymphatic, infectious diseases, integumentary, maternal and newborn care plans, mental health and psychiatric, musculoskeletal, neurological, pediatric nursing care plans, reproductive, respiratory, recommended resources, references and sources, what is a nursing care plan.

A  nursing care plan (NCP)  is a formal process that correctly identifies existing needs and recognizes a client’s potential needs or risks. Care plans provide a way of communication among nurses, their patients, and other healthcare providers to achieve healthcare outcomes. Without the nursing care planning process, the quality and consistency of patient care would be lost.

Nursing care planning begins when the client is admitted to the agency and is continuously updated throughout in response to the client’s changes in condition and evaluation of goal achievement. Planning and delivering individualized or patient-centered care is the basis for excellence in nursing practice .

Types of Nursing Care Plans

Care plans can be informal or formal: An informal nursing care plan is a strategy of action that exists in the nurse ‘s mind. A  formal nursing care plan is a written or computerized guide that organizes the client’s care information.

Formal care plans are further subdivided into standardized care plans and individualized care plans:  Standardized care plans specify the nursing care for groups of clients with everyday needs.  Individualized care plans are tailored to meet a specific client’s unique needs or needs that are not addressed by the standardized care plan.

Standardized care plans are pre-developed guides by the nursing staff and health care agencies to ensure that patients with a particular condition receive consistent care. These care plans are used to ensure that minimally acceptable criteria are met and to promote the efficient use of the nurse’s time by removing the need to develop common activities that are done repeatedly for many of the clients on a nursing unit.

Standardized care plans are not tailored to a patient’s specific needs and goals and can provide a starting point for developing an individualized care plan .

Care plans listed in this guide are standard care plans which can serve as a framework or direction to develop an individualized care plan.

An individualized care plan care plan involves tailoring a standardized care plan to meet the specific needs and goals of the individual client and use approaches shown to be effective for a particular client. This approach allows more personalized and holistic care better suited to the client’s unique needs, strengths, and goals.

Additionally, individualized care plans can improve patient satisfaction . When patients feel that their care is tailored to their specific needs, they are more likely to feel heard and valued, leading to increased satisfaction with their care. This is particularly important in today’s healthcare environment , where patient satisfaction is increasingly used as a quality measure.

Tips on how to individualize a nursing care plan:

• Perform a comprehensive assessment of the patient’s health, history, health status, and desired goals.
• Involve the patient in the care planning process by asking them about their health goals and preferences. By involving the client, nurses can ensure that the care plan is aligned with the patient’s goals and preferences which can improve patient engagement and compliance with the care plan.
• Perform an ongoing assessment and evaluation as the patient’s health and goals can change. Adjust the care plan accordingly.

The following are the goals and objectives of writing a nursing care plan:

• Promote evidence-based nursing care and render pleasant and familiar conditions in hospitals or health centers.
• Support holistic care , which involves the whole person, including physical, psychological, social, and spiritual, with the management and prevention of the disease.
• Establish programs such as care pathways and care bundles. Care pathways involve a team effort to reach a consensus regarding standards of care and expected outcomes. In contrast, care bundles are related to best practices concerning care for a specific disease.
• Identify and distinguish goals and expected outcomes.
• Review communication and documentation of the care plan.
• Measure nursing care.

The following are the purposes and importance of writing a nursing care plan:

• Defines nurse’s role. Care plans help identify nurses’ unique and independent role in attending to clients’ overall health and well-being without relying entirely on a physician’s orders or interventions.
• Provides direction for individualized care of the client.  It serves as a roadmap for the care that will be provided to the patient and allows the nurse to think critically in developing interventions directly tailored to the individual.
• Continuity of care. Nurses from different shifts or departments can use the data to render the same quality and type of interventions to care for clients, therefore allowing clients to receive the most benefit from treatment.
• Coordinate care. Ensures that all members of the healthcare team are aware of the patient’s care needs and the actions that need to be taken to meet those needs preventing gaps in care.
• Documentation . It should accurately outline which observations to make, what nursing actions to carry out, and what instructions the client or family members require. If nursing care is not documented correctly in the care plan, there is no evidence the care was provided.
• Serves as a guide for assigning a specific staff to a specific client.  There are instances when a client’s care needs to be assigned to staff with particular and precise skills.
• Monitor progress. To help track the patient’s progress and make necessary adjustments to the care plan as the patient’s health status and goals change.
• Serves as a guide for reimbursement.  The insurance companies use the medical record to determine what they will pay concerning the hospital care received by the client.
• Defines client’s goals. It benefits nurses and clients by involving them in their treatment and care.

A nursing care plan (NCP) usually includes nursing diagnoses , client problems, expected outcomes, nursing interventions , and rationales . These components are elaborated on below:

• Client health assessment , medical results, and diagnostic reports are the first steps to developing a care plan. In particular, client assessment relates to the following areas and abilities: physical, emotional, sexual, psychosocial, cultural, spiritual/transpersonal, cognitive, functional, age-related, economic, and environmental. Information in this area can be subjective and objective.
• Nursing diagnosis . A nursing diagnosis is a statement that describes the patient’s health issue or concern. It is based on the information gathered about the patient’s health status during the assessment.
• Expected client outcomes. These are specific goals that will be achieved through nursing interventions . These may be long and short-term.
• Nursing interventions . These are specific actions that will be taken to address the nursing diagnosis and achieve expected outcomes . They should be based on best practices and evidence-based guidelines.
• Rationales. These are evidence-based explanations for the nursing interventions specified.
• Evaluation . These includes plans for monitoring and evaluating a patient’s progress and making necessary adjustments to the care plan as the patient’s health status and goals change.

Care Plan Formats

Nursing care plan formats are usually categorized or organized into four columns: (1) nursing diagnoses, (2) desired outcomes and goals, (3) nursing interventions, and (4) evaluation. Some agencies use a three-column plan where goals and evaluation are in the same column. Other agencies have a five-column plan that includes a column for assessment cues.

The three-column plan has a column for nursing diagnosis, outcomes and evaluation, and interventions.

This format includes columns for nursing diagnosis, goals and outcomes, interventions, and evaluation.

Below is a document containing sample templates for the different nursing care plan formats. Please feel free to edit, modify, and share the template.

Download: Printable Nursing Care Plan Templates and Formats

Student care plans are more lengthy and detailed than care plans used by working nurses because they serve as a learning activity for the student nurse.

Care plans by student nurses are usually required to be handwritten and have an additional column for “Rationale” or “Scientific Explanation” after the nursing interventions column. Rationales are scientific principles that explain the reasons for selecting a particular nursing intervention.

Writing a Nursing Care Plan

How do you write a nursing care plan (NCP)? Just follow the steps below to develop a care plan for your client.

The first step in writing a nursing care plan is to create a client database using assessment techniques and data collection methods ( physical assessment , health history , interview, medical records review, and diagnostic studies). A client database includes all the health information gathered . In this step, the nurse can identify the related or risk factors and defining characteristics that can be used to formulate a nursing diagnosis. Some agencies or nursing schools have specific assessment formats you can use.

Critical thinking is key in patient assessment, integrating knowledge across sciences and professional guidelines to inform evaluations. This process, crucial for complex clinical decision-making , aims to identify patients’ healthcare needs effectively, leveraging a supportive environment and reliable information

Now that you have information about the client’s health, analyze, cluster, and organize the data to formulate your nursing diagnosis, priorities, and desired outcomes.

Nursing diagnoses are a uniform way of identifying, focusing on and dealing with specific client needs and responses to actual and high-risk problems. Actual or potential health problems that can be prevented or resolved by independent nursing intervention are termed nursing diagnoses.

We’ve detailed the steps on how to formulate your nursing diagnoses in this guide:  Nursing Diagnosis (NDx): Complete Guide and List .

Setting priorities involves establishing a preferential sequence for addressing nursing diagnoses and interventions. In this step, the nurse and the client begin planning which of the identified problems requires attention first. Diagnoses can be ranked and grouped as having a high, medium, or low priority. Life-threatening problems should be given high priority.

A nursing diagnosis encompasses Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and helps to prioritize and plan care based on patient-centered outcomes. In 1943, Abraham Maslow developed a hierarchy based on basic fundamental needs innate to all individuals. Basic physiological needs/goals must be met before higher needs/goals can be achieved, such as self-esteem and self-actualization. Physiological and safety needs are the basis for implementing nursing care and interventions. Thus, they are at the base of Maslow’s pyramid, laying the foundation for physical and emotional health.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

• Basic Physiological Needs: Nutrition (water and food), elimination (Toileting), airway (suction)-breathing (oxygen)-circulation (pulse, cardiac monitor, blood pressure ) (ABCs), sleep , sex, shelter, and exercise.
• Safety and Security: Injury prevention ( side rails , call lights, hand hygiene , isolation , suicide precautions, fall precautions, car seats, helmets, seat belts), fostering a climate of trust and safety ( therapeutic relationship ), patient education (modifiable risk factors for stroke , heart disease).
• Love and Belonging: Foster supportive relationships, methods to avoid social isolation ( bullying ), employ active listening techniques, therapeutic communication , and sexual intimacy.
• Self-Esteem: Acceptance in the community, workforce, personal achievement, sense of control or empowerment, accepting one’s physical appearance or body habitus.
• Self-Actualization: Empowering environment, spiritual growth, ability to recognize the point of view of others, reaching one’s maximum potential.

The client’s health values and beliefs, priorities, resources available, and urgency are factors the nurse must consider when assigning priorities. Involve the client in the process to enhance cooperation.

Step 5: Establishing Client Goals and Desired Outcomes

After assigning priorities for your nursing diagnosis, the nurse and the client set goals for each determined priority. Goals or desired outcomes describe what the nurse hopes to achieve by implementing the nursing interventions derived from the client’s nursing diagnoses. Goals provide direction for planning interventions, serve as criteria for evaluating client progress, enable the client and nurse to determine which problems have been resolved, and help motivate the client and nurse by providing a sense of achievement.

One overall goal is determined for each nursing diagnosis. The terms “ goal outcomes “ and “expected outcome s” are often used interchangeably.

According to Hamilton and Price (2013), goals should be SMART . SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-oriented goals.

• Specific. It should be clear, significant, and sensible for a goal to be effective.
• Measurable or Meaningful. Making sure a goal is measurable makes it easier to monitor progress and know when it reaches the desired result.
• Attainable or Action-Oriented. Goals should be flexible but remain possible.
• Realistic or Results-Oriented. This is important to look forward to effective and successful outcomes by keeping in mind the available resources at hand.
• Timely or Time-Oriented. Every goal needs a designated time parameter, a deadline to focus on, and something to work toward.

Hogston (2011) suggests using the REEPIG standards to ensure that care is of the highest standards. By this means, nursing care plans should be:

• Realistic. Given available resources. 
• Explicitly stated. Be clear about precisely what must be done, so there is no room for misinterpretation of instructions.
• Evidence-based. That there is research that supports what is being proposed. 
• Prioritized. The most urgent problems are being dealt with first. 
• Involve. Involve both the patient and other members of the multidisciplinary team who are going to be involved in implementing the care.
• Goal-centered. That the care planned will meet and achieve the goal set.

Goals and expected outcomes must be measurable and client-centered.  Goals are constructed by focusing on problem prevention, resolution, and rehabilitation. Goals can be short-term or long-term . Most goals are short-term in an acute care setting since much of the nurse’s time is spent on the client’s immediate needs. Long-term goals are often used for clients who have chronic health problems or live at home, in nursing homes, or in extended-care facilities.

• Short-term goal . A statement distinguishing a shift in behavior that can be completed immediately, usually within a few hours or days.
• Long-term goal . Indicates an objective to be completed over a longer period, usually weeks or months.
• Discharge planning . Involves naming long-term goals, therefore promoting continued restorative care and problem resolution through home health, physical therapy, or various other referral sources.

Goals or desired outcome statements usually have four components: a subject, a verb, conditions or modifiers, and a criterion of desired performance.

• Subject. The subject is the client, any part of the client, or some attribute of the client (i.e., pulse, temperature, urinary output). That subject is often omitted in writing goals because it is assumed that the subject is the client unless indicated otherwise (family, significant other ).
• Verb. The verb specifies an action the client is to perform, for example, what the client is to do, learn, or experience.
• Conditions or modifiers. These are the “what, when, where, or how” that are added to the verb to explain the circumstances under which the behavior is to be performed.
• Criterion of desired performance. The criterion indicates the standard by which a performance is evaluated or the level at which the client will perform the specified behavior. These are optional.

When writing goals and desired outcomes, the nurse should follow these tips:

• Write goals and outcomes in terms of client responses and not as activities of the nurse. Begin each goal with “Client will […]” help focus the goal on client behavior and responses.
• Avoid writing goals on what the nurse hopes to accomplish, and focus on what the client will do.
• Use observable, measurable terms for outcomes. Avoid using vague words that require interpretation or judgment of the observer.
• Desired outcomes should be realistic for the client’s resources, capabilities, limitations, and on the designated time span of care.
• Ensure that goals are compatible with the therapies of other professionals.
• Ensure that each goal is derived from only one nursing diagnosis. Keeping it this way facilitates evaluation of care by ensuring that planned nursing interventions are clearly related to the diagnosis set.
• Lastly, make sure that the client considers the goals important and values them to ensure cooperation.

Step 6: Selecting Nursing Interventions

Nursing interventions are activities or actions that a nurse performs to achieve client goals. Interventions chosen should focus on eliminating or reducing the etiology of the priority nursing problem or diagnosis. As for risk nursing problems, interventions should focus on reducing the client’s risk factors. In this step, nursing interventions are identified and written during the planning step of the nursing process ; however, they are actually performed during the implementation step.

Nursing interventions can be independent, dependent, or collaborative:

• Independent nursing interventions are activities that nurses are licensed to initiate based on their sound judgement and skills. Includes: ongoing assessment, emotional support, providing comfort , teaching, physical care, and making referrals to other health care professionals.
• Dependent nursing interventions are activities carried out under the physician’s orders or supervision. Includes orders to direct the nurse to provide medications, intravenous therapy , diagnostic tests, treatments, diet, and activity or rest. Assessment and providing explanation while administering medical orders are also part of the dependent nursing interventions.
• Collaborative interventions are actions that the nurse carries out in collaboration with other health team members, such as physicians, social workers, dietitians, and therapists. These actions are developed in consultation with other health care professionals to gain their professional viewpoint.

Nursing interventions should be:

• Safe and appropriate for the client’s age, health, and condition.
• Achievable with the resources and time available.
• Inline with the client’s values, culture, and beliefs.
• Inline with other therapies.
• Based on nursing knowledge and experience or knowledge from relevant sciences.

When writing nursing interventions, follow these tips:

• Write the date and sign the plan. The date the plan is written is essential for evaluation, review, and future planning. The nurse’s signature demonstrates accountability.
• Nursing interventions should be specific and clearly stated, beginning with an action verb indicating what the nurse is expected to do. Action verb starts the intervention and must be precise. Qualifiers of how, when, where, time, frequency, and amount provide the content of the planned activity. For example: “ Educate parents on how to take temperature and notify of any changes,” or “ Assess urine for color, amount, odor, and turbidity.”
• Use only abbreviations accepted by the institution.

Rationales, also known as scientific explanations, explain why the nursing intervention was chosen for the NCP.

Rationales do not appear in regular care plans. They are included to assist nursing students in associating the pathophysiological and psychological principles with the selected nursing intervention.

Evaluation is a planned, ongoing, purposeful activity in which the client’s progress towards achieving goals or desired outcomes is assessed, and the effectiveness of the nursing care plan (NCP). Evaluation is an essential aspect of the nursing process because the conclusions drawn from this step determine whether the nursing intervention should be terminated, continued, or changed.

The client’s care plan is documented according to hospital policy and becomes part of the client’s permanent medical record, which may be reviewed by the oncoming nurse. Different nursing programs have different care plan formats. Most are designed so that the student systematically proceeds through the interrelated steps of the nursing process , and many use a five-column format.

Nursing Care Plan List

This section lists the sample nursing care plans (NCP) and nursing diagnoses for various diseases and health conditions. They are segmented into categories:

Miscellaneous nursing care plans examples that don’t fit other categories:

Care plans that involve surgical intervention .

Nursing care plans about the different diseases of the cardiovascular system :

Nursing care plans (NCP) related to the endocrine system and metabolism:

Care plans (NCP) covering the disorders of the gastrointestinal and digestive system :

Care plans related to the hematologic and lymphatic system:

NCPs for communicable and infectious diseases:

All about disorders and conditions affecting the integumentary system:

Nursing care plans about the care of the pregnant mother and her infant. See care plans for maternity and obstetric nursing:

Care plans for mental health and psychiatric nursing:

Care plans related to the musculoskeletal system:

Nursing care plans (NCP) for related to nervous system disorders:

Care plans relating to eye disorders:

Nursing care plans (NCP) for pediatric conditions and diseases:

Care plans related to the reproductive and sexual function disorders:

Care plans for respiratory system disorders:

Care plans related to the kidney and urinary system disorders:

Recommended nursing diagnosis and nursing care plan books and resources.

Disclosure: Included below are affiliate links from Amazon at no additional cost from you. We may earn a small commission from your purchase. For more information, check out our privacy policy .

Ackley and Ladwig’s Nursing Diagnosis Handbook: An Evidence-Based Guide to Planning Care We love this book because of its evidence-based approach to nursing interventions. This care plan handbook uses an easy, three-step system to guide you through client assessment, nursing diagnosis, and care planning. Includes step-by-step instructions showing how to implement care and evaluate outcomes, and help you build skills in diagnostic reasoning and critical thinking.

Nursing Care Plans – Nursing Diagnosis & Intervention (10th Edition) Includes over two hundred care plans that reflect the most recent evidence-based guidelines. New to this edition are ICNP diagnoses, care plans on LGBTQ health issues, and on electrolytes and acid-base balance.

Nurse’s Pocket Guide: Diagnoses, Prioritized Interventions, and Rationales Quick-reference tool includes all you need to identify the correct diagnoses for efficient patient care planning. The sixteenth edition includes the most recent nursing diagnoses and interventions and an alphabetized listing of nursing diagnoses covering more than 400 disorders.

Nursing Diagnosis Manual: Planning, Individualizing, and Documenting Client Care  Identify interventions to plan, individualize, and document care for more than 800 diseases and disorders. Only in the Nursing Diagnosis Manual will you find for each diagnosis subjectively and objectively – sample clinical applications, prioritized action/interventions with rationales – a documentation section, and much more!

All-in-One Nursing Care Planning Resource – E-Book: Medical-Surgical, Pediatric, Maternity, and Psychiatric-Mental Health   Includes over 100 care plans for medical-surgical, maternity/OB, pediatrics, and psychiatric and mental health. Interprofessional “patient problems” focus familiarizes you with how to speak to patients.

Recommended reading materials and sources for this NCP guide: 

• Björvell, C., Thorell-Ekstrand, I., & Wredling, R. (2000). Development of an audit instrument for nursing care plans in the patient record.   BMJ Quality & Safety ,  9 (1), 6-13. [ Link ]
• DeLaune, S. C., & Ladner, P. K. (2011).  Fundamentals of nursing: Standards and practice . Cengage learning .
• Freitas, F. A., & Leonard, L. J. (2011). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and student academic success .  Teaching and learning in Nursing ,  6 (1), 9-13.
• Hamilton, P., & Price, T. (2007). The nursing process, holistic.  Foundations of Nursing Practice E-Book: Fundamentals of Holistic Care , 349.
• Lee, T. T. (2004). Evaluation of computerized nursing care plan: instrument development .  Journal of Professional Nursing ,  20 (4), 230-238.
• Lee, T. T. (2006). Nurses’ perceptions of their documentation experiences in a computerized nursing care planning system .  Journal of Clinical Nursing ,  15 (11), 1376-1382.
• Rn , B. O. C., Rn, H. M., Rn, D. T., & Rn, F. E. (2000). Documenting and communicating patient care : Are nursing care plans redundant?.  International Journal of Nursing Practice ,  6 (5), 276-280.
• Stonehouse, D. (2017). Understanding the nursing process .  British Journal of Healthcare Assistants ,  11 (8), 388-391.
• Yildirim, B., & Ozkahraman, S. (2011). Critical thinking in nursing process and education .  International journal of humanities and social science ,  1 (13), 257-262.

67 thoughts on “Nursing Care Plans (NCP) Ultimate Guide and List”

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Risk for ineffective thermoregulation would be a good one for you to do next for newborn.

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What is a nursing care plan a mother in second stage of labour?

Please see: 36 Labor Stages, Induced and Augmented Labor Nursing Care Plans

What is the nursing care plan for pulmonary oedema?

I m interest in receiving a blank nursing care plan template for my students to type on. I was wondering if it was available and if so can you please direct me on where to find it?

Hi! You can download it here: Nursing Care Plan Template

I love this website!!! Is there a textbook version of the Nurseslabs that I can purchase??

Thank you Nurseslabs. This is a wonderful note you’ve prepared for all nurses. I would like a pdf of this. Thanks.

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Hi Matt! I would like to purchase a textbook of your nursing care plan. Where I can purchase pls help!

Hi Criselda,

Sorry, we don’t have a textbook. All of our resources are here on the website and free to use.

Good day, I would like to know how can I use your website to help students with care plans.

Sincerely, Oscar A. Acosta DNP, RN

Oh I love your works. Your explanations

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I love this, so helpful.

These care plans are great for using as a template. I don’t have to reinvent the wheel, and the information you provided will ensure that I include the important data without leaving things out. Thanks a million!

Hi, I have learnt a lot, this is a wonderful note you’ve prepared for all nurses thank you.

Matt, this page is very informative and I especially appreciate seeing care plans for patients with neurological disorders. I notice, though, that traumatic brain injury is not on your list. Might you add a care plan page for this?

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Hi, is there a downloadable version of this, pdf or other files maybe this is awesome!

Hi Paul, on your browser go to File > Print > Save as PDF. Hope that helps and thanks for visiting Nurseslabs!

Matt, I’m a nursing instructor looking for tools to teach this. I am interested in where we can find “rules” for establishing “related to” sections…for example –not able to utilize medical diagnosis as a “related to” etc. Also, resources for nursing rationale.

Hello, please check out our guide on how to write nursing diagnoses here: https://nurseslabs.com/nursing-diagnosis/

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Hello Ujunwa, Thanks a lot for the positive vibes! 🌟 It’s super important to us that everyone has access to quality resources. Just wondering, is there any specific topic or area you’d love to see more about? We’re always looking to improve and add value!

Great work.

Hi Abbas, Thank you so much! Really glad to hear you found the nursing care plans guide useful. If there’s a specific area or topic you’re keen on exploring more, or if you have any suggestions for improvement, feel free to share. Always aiming to make our resources as helpful as possible!

It has been good time me to use these nursing guides.

What is ncp for acute pain

For everything you need to know about managing acute pain, including a detailed nursing care plan (NCP), definitely check out our acute pain nursing care plan guide . It’s packed with insights on assessment, interventions, and patient education to effectively manage and alleviate acute pain.

Good morning. I love this website

what is working knowledge on nursing standard, and Basic Life Support documentation?

Thank you for the website, it is awesome. I just have one question about the 1st set of ABG (Practice Exam) – The following are the values: pH 7.3, PaCO2 68 mm Hg, HCO3 28 mmol/L, and PaO2 60 mm Hg…Definitely Respiratory Acidosis, but the HC03 is only 28 mmol/L..I thought HC03 of 28 mmol/L would be within the normal range and thus, no compensation, but the correct answer has partial compensation because of the HC03 value. What value ranges are you using for HC03. Thanks, EK Mickley, RN BSN

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How do I write a lesson plan for nursing?

I have been asked to create a lesson plan in my nursing course.

What is a lesson plan and why is it important?

A lesson plan is a document used to plan how the educator will achieve the goals or objectives of the lesson.  Lesson plans are important because they provide a clear understanding of what will be taught, how it will be taught and evaluated, and how much time can be dedicated to each objective.  It provides an in-depth look into the lesson to ensure the content is approached in a logical and organized manner.

What should I include in a lesson plan?

A lesson plan should contain the following:

• Purpose:  The why behind the lesson
• Goal:  What you hope to accomplish/overall vision
• Check out this FAQ on writing objectives:  https://rasmussen.libanswers.com/faq/265030 
• Outline of content:  What you plan to cover during the lesson
• Instructional methods:  How do you plan to teach the information
• Time allotted for each objective:  How much time do you need to effectively cover each objective
• Instructional resources:  What resources do you need to use to accomplish the objectives/goals of the lesson
• Methods of evaluation:  How do you plan to measure if each objective has been met

Do you have any examples or templates?

Check out the files section for a blank template and a template with further insight into each section.

I am still lost.

If you need more information regarding objectives and lesson plans in nursing, check out Chapter 10 in Nurse as Educator: Principles of Teaching and Learning for nursing Practice.

Bastable, S. (2019).  Nurse as educator: Principles of teaching and learning for nursing practice.  Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ras/reader.action?docID=5144466&ppg=1013  

Links & Files

• Lesson_Plan_Template_with_instructions.pdf
• Lesson_Plan_Template.docx
• Last Updated Dec 07, 2020
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• Answered By Kerry Louvier

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Nursing Care Plans Explained

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This page can help you understand nursing care plans, how they improve nursing team communication and patient care, and how to develop nursing care plans for your patients. Nursing care plans are individualized and ensure consistency for nursing care of the patient, document patient needs and potential risks, and help patients and nurses work collaboratively toward optimal outcomes.

What Is a Nursing Care Plan?

Nursing care plans are a vital part of the nursing process. They provide a centralized document of the patient’s condition, diagnosis, the nursing team’s goals for that patient, and measure of the patient’s progress. Nursing care plans are structured to capture all the important information for the nursing team in one place.

Because they centralize this information and updates, they ensure that everything important is documented and available to all team members. This also makes patient education easier, since all nursing staff members know and can reinforce what the patient needs to learn.

Without nursing care plans, communication can become disjointed, patient information might be scattered across different patient records and databases, or nursing staff might have to rely on verbal handoffs that the new nurse may mishear or even forget if they are dealing with multiple crises at once.

Developing a Nursing Care Plan

Nursing care plans include the initial patient assessment and diagnosis, the desired outcomes and how to achieve them, and an evaluation of the patient’s results. While the names of the individual parts may vary from organization to organization (for example, “implementation” in one plan might be called “intervention” in another), all nursing care plans include these fundamental components.

Many, but not all, nursing care plans include rationales, the reasons for an intervention, while others require them only if there is some reason not to provide the standard intervention.

Nursing plans should be holistic and take account of nonclinical needs where possible, such as preferences for chaplain services or other ways to support the patient’s mental well-being.

Patient Assessment

Patient assessment includes a thorough evaluation of subjective and objective symptoms and vital signs. Nurses are responsible for collecting and maintaining this data, although certified nursing assistants may help collect vital signs.

Nursing Diagnoses

A nursing diagnosis is created by a nurse based on the subjective and objective data collected during the patient assessment. This is separate from a medical diagnosis which must be provided by a physician or nurse practitioner. Nurses select standardized diagnoses approved by the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA) that are relevant to the patient’s condition, symptoms, and risks.

Anticipated Outcomes/Goals

This section describes the goals for the patient, usually both short-term goals, such as reduction of pain or improvement in symptoms or vital signs, as well as long-term goals, such as recovery within a certain time frame. The goals are directly related to the nursing diagnosis.

Implementation

Implementation describes how the nursing team can work to achieve these goals. Specific nursing interventions are planned based on the goals. This section also documents what nursing-specific care the nursing team has performed for the patient.

This section describes how well the patient’s condition responded to the nursing interventions or, in other words, how the goals were or were not met. If the goals were not met, the nurse revises the plan. If the goals were met, the nurse may decide to add more goals and interventions.

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Nursing Care Plan Do’s and Don’ts

While nursing care plans are created to document the care you are providing for your patient, there are “Do’s and Don’ts” to writing an effective care plan. Here are a few:

Using a Nursing Care Plan

In addition to centralizing information, nursing care plans are one of the most effective tools for nurses to uphold the nursing code of ethics and to document that they did so in case of lawsuits or accusations of failure to adhere to care standards. This is one of the many reasons for all nurses and nursing assistants to understand and update each patient’s nursing care plan when necessary.

Unlike most electronic health records systems, nursing care plans are designed to address the patient’s holistic needs which helps provide a better patient experience. When all members of a care team have access to all the information about a patient’s needs and preference, everyone stays on the same page.

Many organizations have their own preferred formats for nursing care plans, but if you are looking for models to update your existing nursing care plan or implement a new one, you can find samples and templates from Craig Hospital and Nursing Home Help .

Page last reviewed July 26, 2021

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Constructing a Lesson Plan

Saunders, Rebecca B. PhD, RN,C

Rebecca B. Saunders, PhD, RN,C, is Associate Dean, The Graduate School, and Associate Professor, School of Nursing, at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina.

Address for reprints: Rebecca B. Saunders, PhD, RN,C, The University of North Carolina Greensboro, 241 Mossman Bldg., PO Box 26176, Greensboro, NC 27402-6176 (e-mail: [email protected] ).

Nurses who teach inservice or continuing education classes are generally required to develop lesson plans, but they may have little understanding of the process. Lesson plans are beneficial because they help teachers articulate and confirm achievement of expected educational outcomes, create a historical record about the class or program, and provide a means of communicating with others. Guidelines for developing lesson plans are presented with rationale for each component.

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What is a Nursing Concept Map? Examples & Templates

What is a nursing concept map, why use a nursing concept map, types of nursing concept maps, nursing concept map templates.

A nursing concept map is a visual tool that helps nursing students strategize patient care on paper. This map allows students to organize and visualize patient care concepts in an easy-to-read diagram that highlights the relationships among various nursing concepts.

Nursing concept maps are also a self-teaching strategy that can help students pre-plan their clinical assessments and provide valuable insight for post-clinical analysis. This tool increases students' clinical reasoning and judgment while optimizing learning.

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Additional benefits of nursing concept maps include:

• Identifying patient problems and health concerns
• Helping organize assessment data
• Determining the appropriate nursing diagnoses and interventions
• Assessing outcomes

Nursing concept maps are effective learning tools for content that can be broken down into categories or when it is essential to clearly visualize the relationship between various concepts. Nursing students most commonly use them in the clinical setting. However, concept maps also benefit students who need to compare and contrast information in the classroom.

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Concept maps can help chuck significant amounts of information using many forms, including:

• Graphic organizers
• T-charts, or
• Venn Diagrams

Although there are many ways to create a concept map, most nursing concept maps are templates utilizing a graphic organizer format.

If you are a nursing student looking to study more effectively and efficiently, you have come to the right place! We’ve designed several nursing concept map templates for you to up your study game and ace your next exam. You can print these out and organize them as you need.

Medical Diagnosis Concept Map Template

SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) Concept Map Template

Body System Concept Map Template

Nursing Diagnosis Concept Care Map

Sarah Jividen , RN, BSN, is a trained neuro/trauma and emergency room nurse turned freelance healthcare writer/editor. As a journalism major, she combined her love for writing with her passion for high-level patient care. Sarah is the creator of Health Writing Solutions , LLC, specializing in writing about healthcare topics, including health journalism, education, and evidence-based health and wellness trends. She lives in Northern California with her husband and two children. 

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How to Write a Care Plan: A Guide for Nurses

Care plans are a way to strategically approach and streamline the nursing process. They also enable effective communication in a nursing team. This guide will help you understand the fundamentals of nursing care plans and how to create them, step by step. We’ll also outline best practices to keep in mind and provide you with a nursing care plan sample that you can download and print.

Table of Contents

What Is a Nursing Care Plan?

What are the components of a care plan, care plan fundamentals, sample nursing care plan.

A nursing care plan documents the process of identifying a patient’s needs and facilitating holistic care, typically according to a five-step framework. A care plan ensures collaboration among nurses, patients, and other healthcare providers. ((M. Vera., “Nursing Care Plans (NCP): Ultimate Guide and Database”, July 5, 2021: https://nurseslabs.com/nursing-care-plans/ )) ((Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing, Farlex, “nursing care plan”, 2012: https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/nursing+care+plan )) ((Health Navigator, “Care planning”, April 6, 2021: https://www.healthnavigator.org.nz/clinicians/c/care-planning/ )) ((Tammy J. Toney-Butler and Jennifer M. Thayer, “Nursing Process,” StatsPearls, July 10, 2020: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499937/ ))

Key Reasons to Have a Care Plan

The purpose of a nursing care plan is to document the patient’s needs and wants, as well as the nursing interventions (or implementations) planned to meet these needs. As part of the patient’s health record, the care plan is used to establish continuity of care. ((C. Björvell et al., “Development of an audit instrument for nursing care plans in the patient record,” Quality in Health Care , March 1, 2000: https://qualitysafety.bmj.com/content/qhc/9/1/6.full.pdf )) These are the main reasons to write a care plan:

• Patient-centered care 

A care plan helps nurses and other care team members organize aspects of patient care according to a timeline. It’s also a tool for them to think critically and holistically in a way that supports the patient’s physical, psychological, social, and spiritual care. Sometimes a patient should be assigned to a nurse with specific skills and experience; a care plan makes that process easier. For patients, having clear goals to achieve will make them more involved in their treatment and recovery. ((Health Navigator, “Care planning”, April 6, 2021: https://www.healthnavigator.org.nz/clinicians/c/care-planning/ ))

• Nursing team collaboration

Writing a care plan allows a team of nurses (as well as physicians, assistants, and other care providers) to access the same information, share opinions, and collaborate to provide the best possible care for the patient. 

• Documentation and compliance

A well-written care plan allows nurses to measure the effectiveness of care and to record evidence that the care was given. This is important both to maximize care efficiency and to provide documentation for healthcare providers.

Care plans are structured as a five-step framework: assessment, diagnosis, outcomes and planning, implementation, and evaluation. ((Tammy J. Toney-Butler and Jennifer M. Thayer, “Nursing Process,” StatsPearls, July 10, 2020: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499937/ ))

Step 1: Assessment

The first step of writing a care plan requires critical thinking skills and data collection. Different healthcare organizations use different formats for the assessment phase. In general, the data you will collect here is both subjective (e.g., verbal statements) and objective (e.g., height and weight, intake/output). The source of the subjective data could be the patients or their caretakers, family members, or friends.

Nurses can gather data about the patient’s vital signs, physical complaints, visible body conditions, medical history, and current neurological functioning. Digital health records may help in the assessment process by populating some of this information automatically from previous records.

Step 2: Diagnosis

Using the collected data, you will develop a nursing diagnosis—which the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA) defines as “a clinical judgment about the human response to health conditions/life processes, or a vulnerability for that response, by an individual, family, group or community.” ((NANDA, “Glossary of Terms”: https://nanda.org/publications-resources/resources/glossary-of-terms/ )) 

A nursing diagnosis sets the basis for choosing nursing actions to achieve specific outcomes. A nursing diagnosis is based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs pyramid ((Saul McLeod, “Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs,” Simply Psychology , Dec. 29, 2020: https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html )) (which identifies and ranks human needs) and helps prioritize treatments. For example, physiological needs (such as food, water, and sleep) are more fundamental to survival than love and belonging, self-esteem, and self-actualization, so they have the priority when it comes to nursing actions. ((Chiung-Yu Shih et al, “The association of sociodemographic factors and needs of haemodialysis patients according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs,” Journal of Clinical Nursing , July 30, 2018: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29777561/ ))

Based on the diagnosis, you’ll set goals (Step 3) to resolve the patient’s problems through nursing implementations (Step 4).

Step 3: Outcomes and Planning

After the diagnosis is the planning stage. Here, you will prepare SMART goals (more detail on this later) based on evidence-based practice (EBP) guidelines. You will consider the patient’s overall condition, along with their diagnosis and other relevant information, as you set goals for them to achieve desired and realistic health outcomes for the short and long term. 

Step 4: Implementation

Once you’ve set goals for the patient, it’s time to implement the actions that will support the patient in achieving these goals. The implementation stage consists of performing the nursing interventions outlined in the care plan. As a nurse, you will either follow doctors’ orders for nursing interventions or develop them yourself using evidence-based practice guidelines.

Interventions are classified into the following seven domains: family, behavioral, physiological, complex physiological, community, safety, and health system interventions. There are several basic interventions that you need to implement during each shift: pain assessment, changing the resting position, listening, cluster care, preventing falls, and fluid consumption.

Step 5: Evaluation

In the final step of a care plan, the health professional (who can be either a doctor or a nurse) will evaluate whether the desired outcome has been met. You will then adjust the care plan based on this information.

In a simple but useful way, Nurse.org explains the core questions your care plan should answer: what, why, and how. ((Mariam Yazdi, “4 Steps to Writing a Nursing Care Plan,” Nurse.org, March 23, 2018: https://nurse.org/articles/nursing-care-plan-how-to/ )) A nursing care plan should include:

• The What : What does the patient suffer from? What do they risk suffering from?
• The Why : Why does your patient suffer from this? Why do they risk suffering from this?
• The How : How can you make this better?

Successful care plans use the fundamental principles of critical thinking, client-centered techniques, goal-oriented strategies, evidence-based practice (EBP) recommendations, and nursing intuition. ((Tammy J. Toney-Butler and Jennifer M. Thayer, “Nursing Process,” StatsPearls, July 10, 2020: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499937/ ))

SMART Goals

In the planning phase of writing a care plan, it’s important that you use goal-oriented strategies. A SMART goals template can help in this process:

• Specific : Your goals for the patient must be well-defined and unambiguous. 
• Measurable : You need to set certain metrics to measure the patient’s progress toward these goals.
• Achievable : Their goal should be possible to achieve.
• Realistic : Their goals must be within reach and relevant to the overall care plan.
• Time-bound : The patient’s goals should have a clear starting time and end date (which can be flexible). 

Effective Communication

Unless your care plan is communicated effectively to all relevant stakeholders, it will only be a plan. Remember that the purpose of a nursing care plan is not to be a static document, but to guide the entire nursing process and enable teamwork, with the goal of improving care. Writing skills are crucially important for nurses—you’ll need to be as accurate and current as possible in your descriptions. For effective communication, keep in mind the following best practices when writing a care plan:

• Write down everything immediately so you don’t forget the details.
• Write clearly and concisely, using terms that your team will understand.
• Include dates and times.

Although you will learn communication skills in an undergraduate or graduate nursing program , you will also develop them over time and with practical experience. ((TigerConnect, “How to Develop a Nursing Care Plan for Your Hospital”: https://tigerconnect.com/blog/how-to-develop-a-nursing-care-plan-for-your-hospital/ ))

Shareable and Easy to Access

Care plans also need to be easy to share with the relevant stakeholders—patients, doctors, other members of the nursing team, insurance companies, etc. The documentation format will vary according to hospital policy , but, in general, care plans are created in electronic format and integrated into the electronic health record (EHR) for easy access to everyone. ((TigerConnect, “How to Develop a Nursing Care Plan for Your Hospital”: https://tigerconnect.com/blog/how-to-develop-a-nursing-care-plan-for-your-hospital/ ))

Finally, you will need to update your care plans often with the latest information. That implies checking in with patients frequently and recording data about how the patient is progressing toward their goals, which will be important in the evaluation stage of the care plan. ((TigerConnect, “How to Develop a Nursing Care Plan for Your Hospital”: https://tigerconnect.com/blog/how-to-develop-a-nursing-care-plan-for-your-hospital/ ))

Despite the overall general objective, nursing care plans written by students are not the same as those created by registered nurses in clinical settings. The student version is much longer, has a greater level of detail, and is exhaustively thorough. On the other hand, nurses often assume some basic concepts and note some of the steps in the care plan only mentally. ((M. Vera., “Nursing Care Plans (NCP): Ultimate Guide and Database”, July 5, 2021: https://nurseslabs.com/nursing-care-plans/ ))

For example, in the interventions section, a student would write: “vital signs recorded every four hours: blood pressure, heart rate, three- or five-lead electrocardiograms, functional oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, and skin temperature,” while an experienced registered nurse might just write “Q4 vital signs.”

Why this difference? As a student or recent graduate, including all the information in your care plan will help you solidify your training. While writing care plans in school can be a very time-consuming task, mastering this information in nursing school will improve your competency and confidence. Most of the information that you’ll have to look up while you’re still in school will become second nature in the future. Here’s what a care plan written by a student looks like:

• Assessment : “heart rate 100 bpm, dyspnea, restlessness, guarding behavior.”
• Diagnosis : “impaired gas exchange RT collection of mucus in airway.”
• Outcomes and planning : “patient must maintain optimal gas exchange.”
• Implementations : “assess respiration; encourage breathing and position changes.”
• Rationale : “respiration will indicate the level of lung involvement, as the patient will adjust their breathing to facilitate gas exchange; these will improve ventilation and allow for chest expansion.”
• Evaluation : “the patient maintained good gas exchange, normal respiratory rate.”

Note that student care plans often have an additional column—rationale—where students note the scientific explanation for the implementations they chose. To help you get started with a care plan writing practice, we’ve created a printable nursing care plan, which you can use to practice writing all the steps outlined in this article.

Wrapping Up: Writing an Effective Nursing Care Plan

To be successful, a nursing plan needs effective communication, goal-oriented tasks, accessibility and shareability, and evidence-based practice. 

When it meets these qualities and is supported by the nurse’s intuition, critical thinking, and a general focus on the patient, a nursing care plan becomes a go-to resource for nurses to record and access all the information they need. A care plan is your roadmap for effective nursing care, and a collaboration tool that improves the entire healthcare process.

While all nursing programs teach the basics of writing a care plan, your communication, goal setting, and critical thinking skills will be shaped by the program you attend. 

For example, one of the benefits of writing care plans is that it will allow you to develop professionalism , along with important values like accountability, respect, and integrity. Key results of professionalism include better overall care, improved team communication, and a more positive work environment. ((Nursco, “Professionalism in Nursing – 5 Tips for Nurses,” July 13, 2018: https://www.nursco.com/professionalism-nursing-5-tips-nurses/ )) 

That’s why it’s important that you choose the right program for your needs—one that will help you develop communication and critical thinking skills, as well as professionalism, to be ready for the day-to-day nursing life. 

The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (USAHS) offers a Master of Science in Nursing degree (MSN), a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree (DNP), and Post-Graduate Nursing Certificates designed for working nurses. Our degrees are offered online, with optional on-campus immersions.* Role specialties include Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), Nurse Educator ,** and Nurse Executive . The MSN has several options to accelerate your time to degree completion. Earn your advanced nursing degree while keeping your work and life in balance.

*The FNP role specialty includes two required hands-on clinical intensives as part of the curriculum.

**The Nurse Educator role specialty is not available for the DNP program.

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Nursing Care Plan (+ Template)

Table of contents, what is a nursing care plan .

A nursing care plan is a written document detailing the nursing interventions that will be done to meet a client’s needs and health goals. It serves as a guide for personalized care of the client and facilitates communication in the healthcare team. 

What is a nursing intervention? 

Nursing interventions are actions in a care plan, such as patient education or treatments. They are formed using patient feedback, evidence-based sources, and the nursing process. 

How to write a nursing care plan 

How to prepare a nursing care plan using the 5-step nursing process (adpie):.

Following the nursing diagnoses that were formed based on a thorough assessment (history, physical assessment, focused assessment), a clear plan of care goals, interventions, and desired outcomes is defined. 

Nursing tip: Gather information in a logical and informed way to provide the best care possible. 

Nursing tip: To address each intervention to assess quality in patient care, goals need to be SMART: 

• M easurable
• A ttainable

Discuss with your client which health goals they would like to achieve. 

Nursing care plan template & examples

Once the client’s goals are established, nursing interventions (NIC) and standard nursing outcomes (NOC) can be used to guide patient care. 

They can, for example, be presented in the nursing care plan in a column-based format: 

Examples of goals could be: 

• Stage 1 pressure ulcer will resolve
• Client demonstrates insulin injection procedure
• Client reports pain level < 4 with ambulation

Examples of fitting nursing interventions could be: 

• Reposition client every 2 hours
• Request diabetes education consult
• Administer pain medication 1 hour before physical therapy

Examples of possible outcomes could be: 

• Reduced redness in lower back area
• Client demonstrates self-injection techniques
• Client ambulates 100 feet twice a day

Nursing intervention examples (practice questions)

Which nursing intervention is placed in the plan of care for a client diagnosed with osteoarthritis.

Answer options:

• Apply a cold compress to the affected joint for 15–20 minutes
• Encourage high-impact exercise like jogging
• Administer IV antibiotics as prescribed
• Start a weight-lifting program for strength

Correct answer:

• Applying a cold compress to the affected joint for 15–20 minutes.

Explanation: 

Cold compresses can help reduce inflammation and relieve pain in osteoarthritis. High-impact exercise and lifting weights can worsen the condition, and antibiotics are not used for osteoarthritis, as it’s not caused by an infection.

A client is diagnosed with hypervolemia. Which is the priority nursing intervention?

• Encourage fluid intake hourly
• Monitor weight and strict I & O
• Administer bronchodilators
• Initiate cardiac monitoring

      2. Monitor weight and intake and output carefully.

In hypervolemia, fluid overload is a concern. Monitoring weight and intake and output allows for accurate assessment and helps guide treatment. More fluid intake would exacerbate the problem, and bronchodilators are not directly related to fluid volume management. Cardiac monitoring is not required as no cardiac problem is identified.

A client has completed a bone marrow biopsy. Which nursing intervention is the priority action post-procedure?

• Elevate the extremity where the biopsy was taken
• Administer a dose of intravenous antibiotics
• Apply pressure to the biopsy site
• Use heating pad at site on low setting

      3. Apply pressure to the biopsy site.

Applying pressure to the biopsy site helps prevent hemorrhage and facilitates clot formation. Elevating the extremity and administering antibiotics are not generally the priority interventions post-bone marrow biopsy. Ice packs, not heat, can be used for short periods of time for tenderness.

Which nursing intervention is essential in caring for a client diagnosed with compartment syndrome?

• Apply ice to the affected extremity.
• Elevate the affected limb above heart level.
• Loosen or remove the tight bandage or cast.
• Alert the Rapid Response Team.

       3. Loosen or remove the tight bandage or cast.

Compartment syndrome is caused by increased pressure within a muscle compartment, which can compromise circulation to the area. If a tight bandage or cast is contributing to the pressure, it should be loosened or removed to alleviate the pressure. The other answers could potentially worsen the condition. The Rapid Response Team is notified for imminent deterioration, which this client is not manifesting

The nurse cares for a client diagnosed with pyelonephritis. Which nursing intervention does the nurse include in the plan of care?

• Encourage fluid restriction.
• Administer prescribed antibiotics.
• Apply a heating pad to the lower back.
• Instruct client to keep blood glucose lower.

      2. Administer prescribed antibiotics.

Pyelonephritis is a bacterial infection of the kidneys that usually requires antibiotic treatment for resolution. Fluid restriction is generally not recommended; in fact, increased fluids may be encouraged. A heating pad may provide temporary relief but doesn’t treat the underlying infection. If the client does have diabetes mellitus, it does increase the risk for pyelonephritis, but no mention of this is given. 

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Nursing Care Plans: An Introduction

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What is a Nursing Care Plan?

A nursing care plan is a road map for the care of a patient and a necessary tool in following the nursing process. Understanding nursing care plans is an important part of any nursing school curriculum and definitely something you’ll need to know as a nursing student. 

In this guide, you’ll learn how to write and use a nursing care plan and why they’re important for maintaining quality patient care.

Why are Care Plans Important?

Care plans play a vital role in the treatment of a patient. They clearly define guidelines along with the nurse’s role in patient care and help them create and achieve a solid plan of action. This equips nurses to provide focused care—without overlooking important steps.

Nursing care plans also promote:

Collaboration

• A well-documented care plan ensures the patient’s entire care team (doctors, nurses, etc.) can access the same information, give input, and join forces to provide the best care possible.
• Care plans help nurses uphold the nursing code of ethics and provide a record that they did so in case of lawsuits or accusations that they failed to adhere to care standards.
• A care plan is a communication tool for patient care between nurses. When nurses change shifts they’re able to reference the patient’s care plan to ensure the same quality care and interventions are being executed.

Without nursing care plans, nursing staff might have to rely on verbal communication and patient information could become more easily scattered or lost, all of which could result in improper patient care .

How to Write a Nursing Care Plan

Nursing care plans follow a five-step process: assessment, diagnosis, outcomes, implementation, and evaluation.

Assess the patient.

The first step to writing a care plan is performing a patient assessment. This includes reviewing your patient’s medical history, diagnosis, lab values, and medications. This step is critical to creating an effective and accurate care plan for either short term or long term care.

Make a diagnosis.

Nursing diagnoses differs from a medical diagnosis in that it’s based on the patient’s response to an illness, rather than the illness itself. Simply put, a nursing diagnosis is focused on patient care rather than treatment.

According to NANDA (North American Nursing Diagnosis Association), a good nursing care plan should not only list each diagnosis but define it as well. For example, acid reflux should be described as: "Ineffective airway clearance related to gastroesophageal reflux as evidenced by retching, upper airway congestion, and persistent coughing.”

Set goals and outcomes.

Once you’ve completed an assessment and diagnosis, it’s time to write down goals and a desired health care outcomes for your patient. These describe what you hope to achieve in the short- and long-term future, provide direction for planning interventions, and serve as criteria for evaluating progress. Goals are documented in the patient’s care plan so that other nurses and health professionals caring for the patient have access to it.

Determine nursing interventions.

At this point in the care plan, you’ll list all planned nursing interventions and document any that you’ve performed. You’ll write down things such as client responses to care, pain scale responses, medications given and their dosages, vital signs, etc. This communicates what nursing orders were implemented, what still needs to be done, and if the patient is ready to be discharged.

Evaluate the plan.

Evaluation is necessary in a patient care plan to determine whether to continue, adjust, or terminate the plan of care. It measures the degree to which goals and outcomes are achieved and provides evidence for what factors positively or negatively impacted those goals.

How to Use a Nursing Care Plan

Registered nurses and nurse practitioners use these plans in the nursing process as a road map for providing care. They’re also a tool to help nurses think critically and holistically to support the patient’s needs—physically, socially, spiritually, and psychosocially. Only RNs can develop the care plan and make changes, although LPNs can contribute suggestions.

A nursing care plan begins as soon as a patient is admitted and is updated frequently as their condition changes or after an evaluation. It’s an ongoing process that requires detailed, accurate documentation that strictly adheres to the nursing code of ethics , as well as HIPAA rules and regulations .

Knowing how to write and implement a nursing care plan is one essential skill you’ll need as a nurse or nurse practitioner . With a degree in nursing , you’ll gain this valuable experience—and the tools to provide the best patient care possible.

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Career Advice > Professional Development > Upskilling and Promotions > Nursing Care Plans: Overview and Writing Tips

Nursing Care Plans: Overview and Writing Tips

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If you’re a nursing student or you’re completing your prerequisites, you might be wondering, What is a plan of care in nursing? Nursing care plans are different from medical plans because nurses use a different set of diagnoses to guide care. They help nurses bridge the gap between medical treatments and patient well-being while standardizing care for patients.

Care plans are an essential part of the nursing process . Critical thinking, patient-centered treatment approaches, goal-oriented tasks , and evidence-based practice are the basis for quality nursing care . Nursing care plans aim to standardize care, so that you have a way to organize your shift and patients get the best outcomes possible.

If you’ve spoken to practicing nurses, you might have heard that they don’t use care plans much. Many electronic medical records (EMRs) — like Epic charting systems — can generate care plans as part of standardized order sets. Once you finish nursing school, you might not write down your care plans anymore. But learning care plans and internalizing the nursing process is an essential foundation for nursing practice.

What Is a Nursing Care Plan?

These plans are a way of structuring your care for each patient — all the way from initial assessment and diagnosis to measuring outcomes and charting. In nursing school, you’ll probably get assigned care plans to show how you would provide care to different patients. Their specific structure helps you build up the habit of using the nursing process in patient care.

While they’re often assigned as written documents in nursing school , nursing care plans are constantly shifting in the real world. Plans change as patient statuses change; you might have a patient with a plan to promote food intake, but if they code, that won’t be your first priority anymore. It’s commonly said that nurses don’t use care plans in clinical practice, but in reality, they just become second nature.

5 Components of a Nursing Care Plan

Nurse care plans follow a specific formula, and every step-by-step nursing care plan has five parts:

1. Assessment: The foundation of any nursing care plan starts with a thorough assessment of the patient’s physical, psychological, social, and environmental factors. Nurses gather data through interviews, physical examinations, handoffs, and reviewing medical records.

2. Diagnosis: Based on the assessment, nurses identify the patient’s health problems, needs, and potential risks. Nursing diagnoses are distinct from medical diagnoses and focus on how the patient responds to health issues. There are four categories of nursing diagnoses, as outlined below.

3. Planning: Nurses collaborate with the patient, their family, and the healthcare team to set goals and establish a plan of care. This involves choosing appropriate interventions and outlining the expected outcomes or nursing implications .

4. Implementation: Nurses execute the care plan by performing interventions and treatments. This phase includes administering medications, providing therapies, educating patients, and addressing their physical and emotional needs.

5. Evaluation: Measuring outcomes is essential, as nurses compare the patient’s actual outcomes with the expected ones. If goals are met, the plan may continue or be modified as necessary.

Nursing Diagnoses: An Essential Part of Nursing Care Plans

Nursing diagnoses are standardized clinical judgements that guide nursing care. The North American Nursing Diagnosis Association International ( NANDA ) defines them as:

“a clinical judgment concerning a human response to health conditions/life processes, or a vulnerability for that response, by an individual, family, group or community. A nursing diagnosis provides the basis for selection of nursing interventions to achieve outcomes for which the nurse has accountability.”

Nursing diagnoses guide nursing care plans, but they’re different from medical diagnoses because they focus on the patient rather than the disease process. Nurses cannot medically diagnose patients, but you’ll use medical diagnoses to choose and guide your nursing diagnoses.

There are four types of NANDA nursing diagnoses :

• Health-problem focused: patient issues or problems that you observe during your assessment
• Risk diagnosis: problems that could develop without nursing interventions
• Health-promotion diagnosis: clinical judgments about a patient’s ability to promote their own wellness
• Syndromes: clinical judgments relating to how diagnoses relate to one another, and how a nurse could intervene on several diagnoses at once

In each care setting, there are nursing diagnoses that you’ll see more often than others. Care plans help you build an association between nursing diagnoses and nursing interventions, so you can implement the right interventions when they’re appropriate.

For example, in med-surg units , a common nursing diagnosis is “ risk for falls .” After writing a care plan, you’ll know that patients with this diagnosis should receive falls prevention education, a bed monitor, and be transferred to a room near the nurses’ station.

How to Write Nursing Care Plans

Nursing care plans follow a standardized formula, and you might refer to NANDA’s publications while writing care plans in nursing school. Follow these steps to learn the flow of a nursing care plan:

1. Assess Your Patient

This includes reviewing medical records, a physical assessment, and interviewing the patient. From these findings, you’ll identify the patient’s health problems, acute needs, and potential risks. Consider their medical history, current medical diagnoses, medications they’re on, and any cultural and psychosocial factors that may impact their care.

2. Nursing Diagnosis

Using the data you gathered during the assessment phase, you’ll choose NANDA nursing diagnoses that fit your patient. They should be clear, specific, and focused on the patient’s response to health issues. Remember that medical diagnoses cannot be nursing diagnoses, but you’ll use them to create your nursing care plan.

Write out your nursing diagnoses using this formula:

• A problem statement, which includes the patient’s health problem
• Etiology or risk factors, which describe the possible reasons for the problem developing
• Defining characteristics , which are symptoms that allow for a nursing diagnosis. ( Risk factors are used instead if you’re writing a risk-based nursing diagnosis.)

Here’s an example nursing diagnosis using NANDA’s guidelines:

“Impaired skin integrity (problem), related to pressure ulcer on sacral area (etiology), as evidenced by erythema and warmth over sacral area as well as open wound and visible tissue damage (defining characteristics).”

3. Planning

You’ll plan the nursing interventions, education, and outcomes you expect. Every care plan should involve the patient, their family, and the rest of the healthcare team. You’ll need to prioritize your interventions based on a patient’s most acute needs and potential risks.

4. Implementation or Intervention

List out the implementation actions that you’ll do to help the patient achieve their goals. This might include nursing interventions like patient education, promoting fluid intake, or feeding assistance. You’ll document each intervention, including the time you did them and the patient response.

5. Evaluation

Assess — and continue to assess — the patient’s outcomes after intervention. Be sure to document whether the goals are met, where they fell short, or where goals should be adjusted. Modify your care plan based on the outcomes you observe. Keep patients and family in the loop to avoid lost progress after discharge.

NANDA Nursing Care Plan Examples

Each nurse care plan example focuses on a different nursing diagnosis — explore our in-depth article about how to create a nursing care plan for dementia — but in reality, most patients will have several nursing diagnoses that you’ll manage at once.

Nursing Care Plan for Pain

Assessment: You’re working in the emergency department, and a 25-year-old male patient comes in with acute leg pain after falling off his skateboard. He presents with a visibly deformed left lower leg, he can’t bear weight on it, and he reports a pain rating of 8/10. His left leg appears swollen, bruised, and deformed at the midshaft of the tibia. His blood pressure is 125/82, his pulse is 87 beats per minute, and he’s breathing at a rate of 16 breaths per minute. After an X-ray, the physician confirms his left tibia is fractured.

Diagnostic Statement: Acute pain related to a fractured left tibia secondary to a skateboarding accident, as evidenced by a self-reported pain rating of 8/10 and an increased respiratory rate of 16 breaths per minute.

• Interventions: You plan to treat his pain using prescribed PRN pain medications, immobilize the leg to prevent pain exacerbation, and administer an ice pack to mitigate swelling.
• Education: You’ll teach this patient about the pain medication you administer, as well as how often they can receive it, and expected outcomes. You also educate him on cold treatment for fractures and why immobility is essential for fracture stabilization.
• Outcomes: You expect these interventions to bring his reported pain level down to a 5/10 and his breathing rate to within normal limits.

Interventions:

• You give the patient the ordered morphine, 15mg PO every 4 hours.
• You bring an ice pack into the room and instruct him to hold it on his left lower leg.
• You advise him not to bear weight on the leg and to call you for a urinal if he needs to use the bathroom.

Outcomes: You reassess his pain in 30 minutes, and he rates it at a 6/10. His breathing has decreased to 8 breaths per minute, and he continues to hold the ice pack on his leg. You’ll continue to monitor and administer pain medication as appropriate.

Nursing Care Plan for Fever

Assessment: You work in a family medicine practice, and a father brings in a female six-month-old for a fever. She is actively crying, her skin is flushed and warm, and her rectal temperature is 101.4F. Her breathing and heart rate are elevated at 42 breaths per minute and 164 beats per minute, respectively.

Diagnostic Statement: Hyperthermia with unknown origin, as evidenced by rectal temp of 101.4 and flushed, warm skin.

• Interventions: You plan to administer prescribed antipyretic medications to reduce fever. You’ll also help the father remove any extra clothing layers since these can contribute to high body temperature.
• Education: You educate the father to provide optimal hydration when body temperature is elevated. If her fever rises past 104º F, you advise him to take her to an emergency department.
• Outcomes: You expect these interventions to reduce her fever to below 100.4º F, and bring her pulse and breathing rates down to within normal limits.
• You administer the prescribed acetaminophen according to her weight dosage.
• You provide an extra sippy cup to be sure she has adequate fluid intake.
• You assist the father in removing any unnecessary clothes, such as booties or caps.
• You educate the father on optimal hydration, signs of worsening status, and when to go to the emergency department for more acute care interventions.

Outcomes: Within 40 minutes, her rectal temperature has reduced to 99.8º F and her pulse is 135 beats per minute, but her breathing is still slightly elevated. She is still crying, but is no longer flushed, and the father verbalizes he feels ready to bring her home for a nap.

Use Nursing Care Plans in Clinical Practice

Looking to put your care plans to work in real life? Explore opportunities to build the kind of career you always planned for. Learn how you can get matched with nursing jobs in your specialty and location on IntelyCare today.

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How to series    

How to write an action plan with a nurse or nursing student, simon downs teaching fellow and paramedic field lead, school of health sciences, faculty of health and medical sciences, university of surrey, guildford, england, deanna hodge teaching fellow and lead for practice education, university of surrey, guildford, england.

• To enhance your understanding of the purpose of an action plan to support a nursing student or nurse

• To learn about the procedure for writing an action plan with a nursing student or nurse

• To know which stakeholders to involve in the development of an action plan

Action plans are commonly used in nursing practice and nurse education to support nurses and nursing students to meet specific objectives, particularly if they face challenges in achieving the level of knowledge and/or skills required by their role or course. Action plans may be used, for example, with preregistration or post-registration nursing students during a placement or with registered nurses for whom there are concerns regarding their professional practice. In that context, an action plan is essentially a set of objectives that the nurse or student is asked to work towards.

• The objectives set in an action plan should be SMART – specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound.

• An action plan should feature resources and activities that will support the person to achieve the objectives, as well as the evidence needed to demonstrate successful completion and a time frame.

• An action plan is one strategy that can be used to support nurses or nursing students to progress in their practice or learning.

‘How to’ articles can help to update your practice and ensure it remains evidence based. Apply this article to your practice. Reflect on and write a short account of:

• How this article might improve your practice when writing an action plan with a nurse or nursing student.

• How you could use this information to educate colleagues on writing an effective action plan with a nurse or nursing student.

Nursing Standard . doi: 10.7748/ns.2022.e11839

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

@UniSurrey999

[email protected]

None declared

Downs S, Hodge D (2022) How to write an action plan with a nurse or nursing student. Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2022.e11839

Please note that information provided by Nursing Standard is not sufficient to make the reader competent to perform the task. All clinical skills should be formally assessed according to policy and procedures. It is the nurse’s responsibility to ensure their practice remains up to date and reflects the latest evidence

Published online: 08 August 2022

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Nursing Notes: How to write them (with Examples)

Although nursing documentation may at times seem overwhelming, it is a key part of nursing practice. Colloquially known as “charting,” nursing documentation provides a record of nursing care provided to a patient, family, or community. Charting and, more specifically, nursing notes, allow nurses to demonstrate that the care they provided was ethical, safe, and informed by relevant nursing knowledge.

In this article:

• Nursing Notes vs. Charting
• How Are Nursing Notes Used?
• How to Write Good Nursing Notes (What’s included)
• SOAPIE Example
• DAR Example
• General Advice on Writing Nursing Notes

Charting is a nursing process that includes all the documentation required from nurses. This might include legal, professional, and institution-specific requirements. Some examples of charting include documenting medications administered, vital signs, physical assessments, and interventions provided. Nursing notes are a narrative written summary of a given nursing care encounter. This might include a description of a nursing visit, a specific care event, or a summary of care. A nurse’s note is a form of charting that describes the nurse’s decision-making process regarding the nursing care provided.

Nursing notes are an important part of high-quality nursing documentation because they provide an opportunity for nurses to demonstrate their nursing knowledge and communicate the nursing process to other team members of the patient’s interprofessional care team.

A clear and comprehensive nursing note serves several purposes in nursing practice, both in patient care and to provide legal protection to the nurse writing the note. Reasons to write high-quality nursing notes include:

• Contributing to continuity of care for patients. Continuous care requires that the care provided to the patient is well-organized and that there is cooperative communication between nurses and other interdisciplinary team members. Continuous care contributes to patient-centered and safe care. Nursing notes allow all people on the care team to understand the patterns of patient care. 1
• Communicating care goals. Nursing notes are one place where the nurse can share the plan of care with team members. Nursing notes also allow others to see what interventions have been performed so far and what the outcome of those interventions were.
• Demonstrating the nurse’s knowledge as required by professional regulators. Nursing notes are useful for demonstrating the knowledge, skill, and judgment required by the nurse’s professional regulators, such as their college. In addition, if there is ever a concern about a nurse’s license, nursing notes can be used as evidence of competent and safe practice in line with professional standards of practice.
• Contribute to quality improvement. Quality improvement projects across nursing settings may include a review of charts to understand the care process. Nursing notes that accurately and comprehensively reflect care delivered allow for more precise quality improvement initiatives.
• Contribute to nursing research. Nursing research projects may include a review of the chart. Similar to quality improvement initiatives, nursing notes that accurately reflect the care provided allow accurate research data to be collected.
• Legal protection. Nursing notes are included in the patient/client’s permanent medical record. In the case of legal action related to care that a nurse provided or was involved in, nursing notes demonstrating that ethical and competent nursing care was delivered provide legal protection to the nurse.
• Reimbursing insurance claims. In some jurisdictions, insurance or other healthcare payers may directly reimburse nursing care. The nursing note may describe the rationale for reimbursable nursing activities in this case.

These are just a few key reasons nurses should spend time and effort writing high-quality nursing notes.

Different work settings may have an expected format or even templates for nursing notes. However, all nursing notes should include evidence of the nursing process. There are different templates for what should be included in a nursing note. Institutional or hospital policies may be in place on what should be included in the nursing note. However, it is the individual nurse’s responsibility and a demonstration of nursing knowledge and judgment to decide what information is relevant or irrelevant for the nursing note.

Nurses’ notes usually include subjective (what the patient tells you) and objective (assessment/analysis) data. However, the nurse should be careful not to include judgements or their own opinion in nursing notes. It is important to include subjective data. However, subjective data should be written in quotation marks as statements made by the patient rather than objective facts.

Two common templates for nursing notes use the mnemonics DAR and SOAPIE . Rather than absolute rules that describe how a nursing note should be structured, these two mnemonics are to be used as guidelines and to help the nurse remember what information should be included in their note.

SOAPIE: subjective (what the patient tells you), objective (the nurse’s assessment), analysis (interpretation of data), plan (what the nurse plans to do), implementation (what was done) and evaluation (how did the intervention work?)

DAR: Data (both subjective and objective), action (what was done), response (how did the patient respond?

There are other acceptable templates for nursing notes. The nurse should check with their institution if there is a preferred or institution-specific policy regarding what should be included in the nursing note. Overall, what must be included in the nursing note is the nurse’s own name, the name of the patient/client, the date and time of the note, and a demonstration of the appropriate nursing process. Nursing notes should also be made in chronological order.

When writing a nursing note regarding a consultation with another healthcare provider, the nurse should include the name and designation of the other healthcare provider in addition to other components of the nursing note.

Nursing Note Examples

In the following section you will find nursing note examples for the SOAPIE as well as for the DAR format.

Patient: Jane Doe Date: January 30, 2023

13:17: Patient reports pain to lower abdomen, rates pain at 7/10. She states that the pain has been increasing over the past half hour after her return from PACU. Mrs. Doe describes the pain as a “dull ache.” ( Subjective ) Abdominal dressing is dry and intact. Bowel sounds are hypoactive X4. Most recent vital signs BP 114/82, HR 88, respiration 18, Sp02 94% on room air. ( Objective ) Patient experiencing post-operative pain related to recent hernia operation. ( Analysis ) Writer will offer patient education regarding PCA usage. ( Plan )

13:26: Writer reminded the patient about how to use the button on her PCA to control her pain. Writer educated patient on the importance of managing post-surgical pain early to maintain comfort. ( Intervention )

13:57 Reassessed patient pain after PCA education. Patient now describes that her pain is “subsiding.” When rating her pain on the pain scale, patient now describes her pain as 2/10 which is acceptable to her. ( Evaluation )

This note includes all elements of the SOAPIE note and also is written at the time in which the activity was performed so there is a clear sequence of events.

Patient: Jill Doe Date: January 30, 2023

0927: On assessment patient described increased shortness of breath related to her chronic asthma. Patient stated that she “uses her inhaler at home when I get short of breath.” Patient respiration rate 22, Sa02 92% on room air, wheeze audible on auscultation of lungs. ( Data ) Writer administered 2 puffs (34 mcg) of patient’s Ipratropium PRN inhaler. ( Action ) Patient states that shortness of breath now resolved. ( Response )

Writing high-quality nursing notes is a skill like any other nursing skill that takes time and focused effort to improve. With practice, nursing notes will become second nature as one pillar of safe and effective clinical practice. Here are a few quick practice pointers to improve your nursing notes.

• If you are using paper charting, ensure that the writing is legible . Illegible charting does not accomplish the goal of communicating care to the team and will not legally protect the nurse.
• Include both subjective and objective data . Including both subjective and objective data in the nursing note creates a comprehensive clinical picture.
• Remember to document significant interactions with family members, significant others, or substitute decision-makers. This might include interactions such as a family member describing the patient’s medical history when the patient is unable to do so themselves.
• Limit your use of abbreviations. If you do use abbreviations, ensure that they are allowed for your institution
• Document as soon as possible after the care interaction. It is preferable to document the care interaction as soon as possible. If the nurse waits to document, they may forget important details.
• If an error is made in documentation, do not delete, white-out, or attempt to erase the error. Instead, document that the first entry was made in error by drawing a line through and initialing for paper charting or following the correct procedure for the electronic medical record.
• For paper charting, use only black or blue ink , which is accepted in legal proceedings and is the easiest to read.
• Read other documentation on the patient! This could include other members of the interprofessional team or nurses’ notes on the patient. These notes may include helpful information that may inform your care of the patient. However, a word of caution is that the nurse should never rely on another’s assessment . Always double check the details of the patient’s history and make your own assessment.

To ensure high-quality nursing notes, the nurse might ask themselves if their note adequately answers the following question: “If another nurse were to take over this assignment, without a verbal handover, is there enough information here that they could provide safe and continuous care for this patient?” 2 If the answer is no, the nurse might consider that more detail ought to be provided.

• College of Nurses of Ontario. Documentation, Revised 2008. Published online 2008. Accessed January 28, 2023. https://www.cno.org/globalassets/docs/prac/41001_documentation.pdf
• College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba. Documentation Guidelines for Registered Nurses. Accessed January 28, 2023. https://crnm.mb.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Documentation-Guidelines-for.pdf

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How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: A Comprehensive Guide

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Nursing Patient Education Plans: Tips and Best Practices

In the dynamic nursing field, education is a cornerstone of patient care. Nursing professionals must provide clinical care and ensure patients understand their conditions and treatment plans. This is where a Nursing Patient Education Plan comes into play. This comprehensive guide will delve into How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan, covering everything from the basics to advanced strategies. Whether you’re a nursing student, a seasoned nurse, or a healthcare professional looking to enhance your patient education skills, this blog will be your go-to resource.

Understanding Patient Education Plans

Patient education is an integral aspect of nursing practice. As a nursing student, you may wonder what a Patient Education Plan is, why it’s important, and what your role as a nurse is in this process. This section will delve into these key aspects, shedding light on how to write effective patient care .

What is a Patient Education Plan?

A Patient Education Plan, often called a Patient Teaching Plan, is a structured document developed by healthcare professionals, primarily nurses, to impart essential medical information to patients. This plan serves as a roadmap for educating patients about their conditions, treatments, and how to manage their health effectively.

Importance of Patient Education in Nursing

Understanding the significance of patient education is crucial for nursing students. Here’s why it matters:

• Enhanced Patient Outcomes : Patient education empowers patients to actively participate in their care, leading to better treatment adherence and improved health outcomes.
• Prevention and Self-Management : Educated patients are better equipped to prevent illnesses, manage chronic conditions, and make informed decisions about their health.
• Improved Communication : It fosters a strong nurse-patient relationship through effective communication, trust, and mutual understanding.
• Reduced Hospital Readmissions : Proper education can decrease the likelihood of hospital readmissions, reducing healthcare costs.

Legal and Ethical Considerations

In the realm of nursing, patient education involves several legal and ethical considerations that must be taken into account:

• Informed Consent : Patients have the right to be fully informed about their treatment options and potential risks before consent.
• Confidentiality : Nurses must maintain patient confidentiality when sharing medical information. Patients must trust that their health information will not be disclosed without consent.
• Cultural Sensitivity : Recognize and respect cultural differences when educating patients to ensure relevant and well-received information.
• Autonomy : Respect a patient’s right to make decisions about their healthcare, even if they differ from your recommendations.

The Role of a Nurse in Patient Education

Nurses play a central role in the development and execution of Patient Education Plans. Here’s what you’ll be responsible for:

• Assessment : Thoroughly assess the patient’s needs, health literacy, and potential barriers to understanding. This forms the foundation of your education plan.
• Planning : Develop a customized education plan based on your assessment. This plan should be tailored to the individual patient’s condition and needs.
• Implementation : Actively educate the patient using clear and understandable language. Encourage questions and ensure the patient comprehends the information.
• Evaluation : Continuously assess the patient’s understanding and make adjustments as necessary. Patient education is an ongoing process that may require modification over time.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan:  Assessing Patient Needs

Before developing a Nursing Patient Education Plan, assessing your patient’s needs and characteristics is essential. This step is critical for tailoring education to meet individual requirements effectively.

Gathering Patient Information

To create a comprehensive and individualized Patient Education Plan, begin by gathering essential patient information:

• Medical History : Understand the patient’s medical history, including pre-existing conditions, medications, and previous treatments.
• Current Health Status : Assess the patient’s health status, including their diagnosis, symptoms, and any recent changes in their condition.
• Psychosocial Factors : Consider the patient’s emotional and social factors that may affect their ability to learn and manage their health.
• Support System : Identify the patient’s support system, including family members or caregivers who may also require education.

Identifying Learning Styles

Different individuals have distinct learning styles, and recognizing these preferences is crucial for effective education:

• Visual Learners : Some patients learn best through visual aids such as diagrams, charts, and videos. Incorporate these elements into your education plan.
• Auditory Learners : Others prefer verbal communication and learn best through discussions and explanations. Engage in active dialogue with these patients.
• Kinesthetic Learners : Some individuals learn by doing. Encourage hands-on activities or demonstrations for these patients.
• Reading/Writing Learners : These individuals learn by reading and writing. Provide written materials and encourage them to take notes.

Assessing Health Literacy

Health literacy is a patient’s ability to understand and apply medical information. Consider the following:

• Health Literacy Level : Determine the patient’s health literacy level, varying from low to high. Adapt your teaching methods accordingly.
• Plain Language : Use plain and simple language, avoiding medical jargon, to ensure the patient comprehends the information.
• Repeat and Confirm : Encourage patients to repeat the instructions and information they’ve learned to confirm their understanding.
• Ask for Questions : Always ask if the patient has questions and provide opportunities for clarification.

Cultural Sensitivity in Patient Education

Cultural sensitivity is vital in the nursing profession to ensure patient education is respectful and relevant to diverse backgrounds:

• Respect Cultural Norms : Understand and respect cultural norms, beliefs, and practices that may affect the patient’s acceptance of medical information.
• Language Barriers : If the patient speaks a language different from yours, ensure the availability of interpreters or translated materials.
• Religious and Dietary Considerations : Be aware of dietary restrictions or religious practices that may influence the patient’s healthcare choices.
• Customize Education : Tailor your education plan to align with the patient’s cultural background and beliefs, making the information more relatable and acceptable.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: Setting Educational Objectives

Setting clear educational objectives is the cornerstone of a Nursing Patient Education Plan. These objectives guide the entire education process, ensuring patients receive the information and skills they need to manage their health effectively.

SMART Goals in Patient Education

In the realm of nursing and patient education, the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goal-setting framework is invaluable:

• Specific : Define the education goals clearly, detailing what the patient needs to learn or achieve.
• Measurable : Ensure the objectives are quantifiable. This helps in tracking progress and determining when the goal has been met.
• Achievable : Set realistic goals that can be accomplished based on the patient’s abilities and resources.
• Relevant : Goals should directly address the patient’s health condition and their specific needs.

Prioritizing Educational Topics

Nursing students must prioritize educational topics based on the patient’s needs and the urgency of the situation:

• Life-Threatening Issues : Start with topics that address immediate, life-threatening issues, ensuring the patient’s safety.
• Chronic Conditions : Focus on chronic conditions and long-term management strategies to enhance the patient’s quality of life.
• Medication and Treatment : Ensure the patient understands how to take prescribed medications and follow treatment plans correctly.
• Preventative Measures : Include information on preventive measures and healthy lifestyle choices to reduce the risk of future health issues.

Tailoring Education to Patient Needs

One size does not fit all when it comes to patient education. Tailoring the education plan to individual needs is paramount:

• Customized Information : Provide information specific to the patient’s condition, avoiding unnecessary details that might overwhelm them.
• Learning Style Adaptation : Utilize the patient’s preferred learning style when delivering information to enhance understanding.
• Frequency and Repetition : Adjust the frequency of education sessions and repeat key information to reinforce learning.
• Use of Technology : Integrate technology, such as educational apps or online resources, for tech-savvy patients.

Involving Patients in Goal Setting

Empower patients to participate in setting their educational objectives, fostering a sense of ownership:

• Collaborative Goal Setting : Discuss and negotiate goals with the patient, considering their input.
• Patient Buy-In : When patients have a say in goal setting, they are more likely to be motivated to achieve these objectives.
• Personalized Goals : Tailor goals to align with the patient’s specific aspirations and what they want to achieve in their healthcare journey.
• Progress Evaluation : Periodically review and adjust goals based on the patient’s progress and changing needs.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: Designing Educational Materials

Creating effective educational materials is a key component of a Nursing Patient Education Plan . Well-designed materials can enhance patient understanding and engagement, ultimately improving health outcomes.

Effective Use of Visual Aids

Visual aids can significantly improve the effectiveness of patient education:

• Clarity and Comprehension : Use diagrams, charts, and images to simplify complex medical information, making it more accessible.
• Reinforcement : Visual aids can reinforce key points and quickly reference patients.
• Customization : Tailor visual aids to match the patient’s learning style, ensuring they resonate with the individual.
• Accessibility : Ensure that visual aids are accessible to all patients, including those with visual impairments, by providing alternative formats.

Writing Patient-Friendly Content

When developing written materials, it’s essential to use patient-friendly language:

• Plain Language : Write in plain, jargon-free language to improve patient comprehension.
• Short and Clear Sentences : Use short and clear sentences to convey information effectively.
• Bulleted Lists : Present information in bulleted lists for easy scanning and reference.
• Avoid Ambiguity : Eliminate vague or ambiguous terms that may confuse patients.

Interactive Learning Tools

Interactive tools can engage patients and promote active learning:

• Videos and Webinars : Create educational videos and webinars that patients can watch at their convenience.
• Interactive Apps : Utilize educational apps that allow patients to interact with the material and track their progress.
• Online Quizzes : Implement quizzes to reinforce learning and assess patient understanding.
• Real-Life Scenarios : Incorporate real-life scenarios to make the material relatable and applicable.

Adhering to Health Literacy Principles

Maintaining health literacy principles is vital in the design of educational materials:

• Readability : Ensure that written materials are at an appropriate reading level for the patient.
• Cultural Sensitivity : Incorporate cultural sensitivity into the design to make materials relevant to a diverse audience.
• Use of Symbols and Icons : Employ universally understood symbols and icons to enhance understanding.
• Feedback and Testing : Collect patient feedback and conduct testing to assess the effectiveness of materials and make necessary improvements.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: Implementing the Education Plan

Implementing a Nursing Patient Education Plan effectively is where theory meets practice. This section explores various strategies and tools nurses can employ to ensure successful execution.

Strategies for Effective Teaching

The success of patient education largely depends on the teaching strategies used by nurses:

• Clear Communication : Communicate information in a clear, concise, and organized manner, ensuring patients can follow the information easily.
• Active Listening : Respond to patients’ questions and concerns and adjust your teaching accordingly.
• Demonstrations : Use hands-on demonstrations to clarify complex procedures or instructions when applicable.
• Repetition : Repeat key points and summarize information to reinforce learning.

Motivating and Engaging Patients

Patient engagement is crucial for the success of your education plan :

• Patient-Centred Approach : Tailor your teaching to the patient’s needs, goals, and preferences, making the education more relevant.
• Positive Reinforcement : Offer positive feedback and encouragement to keep patients motivated.
• Set Achievable Goals : Break down larger objectives into smaller, achievable milestones to boost patient confidence.
• Interactive Learning : Use interactive methods like discussions, role-play, or problem-solving scenarios to engage patients actively.

Addressing Patient Questions and Concerns

Open and effective communication is essential for addressing patient questions and concerns:

• Create a Safe Environment : Encourage patients to ask questions by fostering a safe and non-judgmental environment.
• Active Listening : Pay attention to patient concerns and ensure they feel heard.
• Provide Clear Answers : Address questions with clarity and completeness to resolve doubts effectively.
• Refer to Resources : Direct patients to reliable resources for further information and support.

Using Technology in Patient Education

Technology can enhance patient education in various ways:

• Online Resources : Utilize reputable online resources and educational websites to supplement your teaching.
• Telehealth : Leverage telehealth platforms for remote education and follow-up with patients.
• Mobile Apps : Recommend health-related apps to help patients manage their conditions or track their progress.
• Electronic Health Records (EHRs) : Access and share patient education materials through EHR systems for seamless integration into the healthcare process.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: Evaluating Patient Education

Evaluating the effectiveness of your patient education efforts is crucial to ensure that the knowledge and skills imparted lead to positive health outcomes. This section will explore various methods and strategies for assessing and improving patient education.

Methods for Assessing Learning

To gauge the impact of your education plan, consider these assessment methods:

• Knowledge Tests : Administer tests or quizzes to evaluate a patient’s understanding of the material.
• Observation : Observe patients as they perform tasks related to their health, such as administering medication or managing their condition.
• Feedback Forms : Develop structured feedback forms to collect patient input on the clarity and usefulness of the education provided.
• Self-Reports : Encourage patients to self-report their progress and understanding regularly.

Gathering Feedback from Patients

Patient feedback is a valuable source of information for evaluating your education plan:

• Surveys and Questionnaires : Administer surveys to collect feedback on the effectiveness of the education received.
• Focus Groups : Organize focus group sessions to gather in-depth feedback and insights from a small group of patients.
• One-on-One Interviews : Conduct individual interviews to address specific patient concerns and suggestions.
• Online Portals : Implement online portals or platforms for patients to provide convenient feedback.

Revising the Education Plan

Based on the feedback and assessment results, be prepared to make the necessary adjustments:

• Continuous Improvement : Use patient feedback and assessment data to improve your education materials and methods continuously.
• Adapt to Patient Needs : Tailor the education plan based on individual patient needs, learning styles, and progress.
• Update Content : Ensure your educational materials stay up-to-date with the latest medical information and guidelines.
• Revisit Goals : Reevaluate and adjust the goals of the education plan as necessary to reflect changes in the patient’s condition or objectives.

Tracking Patient Progress

Tracking patient progress is essential for ensuring the education plan is effective:

• Health Metrics : Monitor relevant health metrics, such as blood pressure, blood sugar levels, or medication adherence, to assess progress.
• Patient-Reported Data : Encourage patients to track and report their health data, symptoms, and medication compliance.
• Communication : Maintain open communication with patients to discuss their progress and address any concerns or barriers to success.
• Goal Achievement : Assess whether patients are meeting the educational plan’s goals and make any needed adjustments.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: Overcoming Challenges

Patient education in nursing often comes with its fair share of challenges. This section will explore common hurdles and strategies for overcoming them to ensure effective patient education.

Dealing with Resistance to Education

Resistance to education can manifest in various ways, but understanding and addressing it is crucial:

• Patient-Centred Approach : Tailor your education plan to the patient’s needs and preferences to make it more engaging and relevant.
• Open Dialogue : Encourage patients to express their concerns or concerns regarding education and address them with empathy and understanding.
• Motivational Techniques : Use motivational interviewing techniques to inspire patients to participate actively in their education.
• Incorporate Family : Involve family members or caregivers to help support and motivate the patient in their educational journey.

Language and Cultural Barriers

Language and cultural differences can be substantial barriers to effective patient education:

• Interpreter Services : Utilize professional interpreters or translation services to bridge language gaps.
• Cultural Competency : Develop cultural competency skills to understand better and respect the beliefs and practices of patients from diverse backgrounds.
• Cultural Liaisons : Consider employing cultural liaisons or community health workers to assist in education for patients from specific cultural backgrounds.
• Tailored Materials : Provide educational materials in the patient’s native language or culturally relevant formats.

Addressing Health Beliefs and Misconceptions

Patients may hold preconceived notions or misconceptions about their health:

• Active Listening : Listen to patients’ beliefs and concerns and address these with clear, evidence-based information.
• Provide Evidence : Offer credible sources and evidence to counter any misconceptions or myths.
• Patient Stories : Share success stories of other patients who overcame similar beliefs or misconceptions through education.
• Collaborative Decision-Making : Involve patients in decision-making about their care and treatment, considering their beliefs.

Handling Patient Anxiety and Stress

Patients dealing with illness often experience anxiety and stress that can hinder the learning process:

• Emotional Support : Provide emotional support and a safe space for patients to express their fears and anxieties.
• Stress Reduction Techniques : Teach patients stress reduction techniques such as deep breathing or mindfulness to help them focus on education.
• Break Information into Segments : Avoid overwhelming patients with too much information at once; break it into manageable segments.
• Encourage Questions : Invite patients to ask questions, which can alleviate anxiety by clarifying uncertainties.

How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan: Case Studies and Examples

Examining real-world case studies and examples can provide valuable insights into how patient education plans are implemented across various healthcare scenarios. Here are a few illustrative cases:

Diabetes Patient Education Plan

Case Study : A 45-year-old newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes patient struggles to understand their treatment plan.

Approach : The nurse creates a customized education plan focusing on diet, exercise, and medication management. Visual aids, such as a meal planning chart, simplify complex information. Regular follow-up appointments are scheduled to monitor progress.

Outcome : The patient’s blood sugar levels stabilized within three months, and they reported feeling more confident in managing their condition.

Post-Surgery Care Education

Case Study : A 60-year-old patient is scheduled for hip replacement surgery.

Approach : The nurse conducts preoperative education, explaining the surgery, expected outcomes, and post-operative care. A patient-specific pamphlet is provided, detailing exercises and pain management strategies.

Outcome : The patient undergoes surgery confidently, follows the recommended exercises, and experiences a smoother recovery.

Maternity and Childbirth Education

Case Study : A pregnant woman in her third trimester seeks guidance on childbirth and newborn care.

Approach : The nurse offers prenatal classes covering labor, delivery, and infant care. Visual aids and hands-on demonstrations are used. A discussion group connects expectant parents for additional support.

Outcome : The mother and her partner report feeling well-prepared for childbirth and the arrival of their baby.

Chronic Illness Management

Case Study : A 55-year-old patient with hypertension and heart disease needs long-term management.

Approach : The nurse designs an ongoing education plan, including regular blood pressure monitoring, medication management, and lifestyle changes. The patient receives educational materials and is encouraged to ask questions.

Outcome : The patient successfully manages their chronic conditions, leading to improved heart health and a better quality of life.

Frequently Asked Questions About “How to Write a Nursing Patient Education Plan”

What is the primary goal of a nursing patient education plan.

The primary goal is to empower patients with the knowledge and skills they need to manage their health effectively, make informed decisions, and achieve better health outcomes.

How can I tailor a Patient Education Plan to individual patients?

You can tailor a plan by assessing the patient’s needs, learning style, and health literacy and by actively involving the patient in goal setting and content customization.

What role does technology play in patient education?

Technology can enhance patient education by providing access to online resources, educational apps, telehealth platforms, and electronic health records, making information more accessible and interactive.

How can I evaluate the effectiveness of a Patient Education Plan?

You can assess learning through tests, observation, feedback, and self-reports. Gathering patient feedback, tracking their progress, and adjusting based on the results are key to evaluating success.

What are some common challenges in patient education, and how can I address them?

Common challenges include resistance to education, language and cultural barriers, health beliefs, and patient anxiety. To address these, use a patient-centred approach, provide cultural competency, communicate clearly, and create a supportive learning environment.

Where can I find more resources and tools for patient education as a nurse?

You can find books, journals, online courses, webinars, patient education software, and professional organizations focusing on nurse education. Conduct web searches using the names of the resources mentioned in Section 9 for more information.

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The Administration track prepares students to lead healthcare innovations by improving access, addressing quality and safety issues, and supervising the finance and operations of a health care organization.

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Through the Education track, nurse educators prepare to apply educational theory and practice, develop courses and curriculum for nursing students and staff, and develop classroom and clinical strategies to prepare nurses to function in the health care environment.

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The FNP track integrates both academic and community-based training to promote an evidence based approach to the care of individuals, families and the community. Hybrid graduate tracks offer face-to-face classes one day a week for maximum scheduling flexibility for students, while offering the essential benefit of role-modeling and networking with leaders in the profession.

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If a student successfully completes the core curriculum at an institution of higher education, that block of courses may be transferred to any other institution of higher education and must be substituted for the receiving institution’s core curriculum. A student shall receive academic credit for each of the courses transferred and may not be required to take additional core curriculum courses at the receiving institution unless the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has approved a larger core curriculum at that institution.

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What's Project 2025? Unpacking the Pro-Trump Plan to Overhaul US Government

For several months, we received a flood of reader inquiries asking if project 2025 was a real effort to “reshape america.” here’s the answer., nur ibrahim, aleksandra wrona, published july 3, 2024.

• Project 2025 is a conservative coalition's plan for a future Republican U.S. presidential administration. If voters elect the party's presumed nominee, Donald Trump, over Democrat Joe Biden in November 2024, the coalition hopes the new president will implement the plan immediately.
• The sweeping effort centers on a roughly 1,000-page document  that gives the executive branch more power, reverses Biden-era policies and specifies numerous department-level changes.
• People across the political spectrum fear such actions are precursors to authoritarianism and have voiced concerns over the proposal's recommendations to reverse protections for LGBTQ+ people, limit abortion access, stop federal efforts to mitigate climate change — and more.
• The Heritage Foundation — a conservative think tank operated by many of Trump's current and former political allies — is leading the initiative. President Kevin Roberts once said  the project's main goals are "institutionalizing Trumpism" and getting rid of unelected bureaucrats who he believes wield too much political influence.
• The Trump campaign's goals and proposals within Project 2025 overlap. However, the former president has attempted to distance himself from the initiative. In a July 5, 2024, post on Truth Social , he wrote: " I know nothing about Project 2025. I have no idea who is behind it. I disagree with some of the things they're saying and some of the things they're saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them."
• In other words, it's unknown if, or to what extent, Trump's campaign is talking to leaders of the initiative. Many political analysts and the Biden administration believe Project 2025 is a good indication of Trump's vision for a second term.

Here at Snopes, the internet's premiere fact-checking site, we believe in unbiased, fact-driven reporting to help guide people's everyday lives. And when it comes to voting in elections, we hold that responsibility high. We call out candidates' mistruths, contextualize campaign claims and pull back the curtain on efforts shaping political parties' agendas. Our hope is to give voters the knowledge they need to mark ballots without any distorted sense of reality. Below is an example of that work — a months-long analysis of an all-encompassing effort to reshape the American bureacracy following the 2024 U.S. presidential election. If you'd like to support this type of journalism,  we'd love your help .   —  Jessica Lee ,  senior assignments editor,  snopes.com

As the U.S. 2024 presidential election nears, U.S. President Joe Biden's reelection campaign has been sending foreboding emails to supporters, invoking "Trump's Project 2025" to tap into anxieties over another four years with Donald Trump in the White House and to raise campaign money.

According to some of the emails, "Project 2025" calls for proposals that would separate "mothers away from their children," a reference to border policies during Trump's administration, or result in "higher housing costs and rampant discrimination."

The Biden campaign is not alone in its concern over the policy initiative. Critics including legal experts and former government employees have described Project 2025 as a precursor to authoritarianism — albeit a difficult one to implement — and a wave of social media  posts  are expressing  fear over the initiative, calling it a " fascist " and " extremist " plan for Trump to " reshape America." Numerous reports have also called this conservative effort to reshape the government unprecedented in its scale. 

But what exactly is Project 2025? Are the messages from critics rooted in fact or fear-mongering? What should people know about the alleged policy plan? Over the past year, Snopes has received a flood of inquiries from readers asking if Project 2025 was real and what it entails, and if American politicians plan to implement it.

Under the leadership of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, Project 2025 is indeed a real, all-encompassing initiative to transform the American bureaucracy if, or when, a conservative president takes over the White House. Project leaders are hoping to put it into motion as early as November 2024 if voters elect former President Donald Trump. 

Politico once described the policy initiative as an effort to make a "MAGA" conservative government by reshaping how federal employees work, and the  creators themselves have framed it as a push to institutionalize " Trumpism " —  that is,  Trump's political agenda — at every level of federal government. On Truth Social, a Trump-owned social media platform, users have described it as a return to "constitutional" values.

In June 2024, House Democrats launched a task force to make plans for a potential future in which Project 2025's recommendations could become reality.

The growing interest in Project 2025 coincided with the progression of Trump's presidential campaign. A  June 2024  NPR/PBS News/Marist poll found the presidential race to be extremely tight, with Biden and Trump almost tied, echoing a months-long trend of national surveys. ( Historically , polls at this stage of campaigns are not indicative of actual election outcomes.)

Leaders and supporters of the initiative declined to be interviewed for this story or did not respond to Snopes' inquiries.

What is Project 2025?

Project 2025 has four parts, according to its website : 

• A roughly 1,000-page document titled " Mandate for Leadership 2025: The Conservative Promise ."  That report details supporters' proposals for federal departments, as well as their overall agenda for a conservative government.
• A purported transition plan for federal departments. Project 2025 leaders say they have a 180-day transition plan for each federal agency to quickly adapt to a Trump presidency should he win in November. As of this writing, the contents of that plan were unknown.
• A new database that aims to fill federal jobs with conservative voices. Spencer Chretien, associate director of Project 2025, once called the online system to screen potential new hires the " conservative LinkedIn ." It's currently active on the Project's website.
• A new system to train potential political appointees . Called the " Presidential Administration Academy ," the system aims to teach skills for "advancing conservative ideas" as soon as new hires join the administration. The lessons touch on everything from budget-making to media relations and currently consist of 30- to 90-minute online sessions. Project 2025 leaders say they will host in-person sessions as the election nears. 

There's reportedly another facet to Project 2025 that's not detailed on its website: an effort to draft executive orders for the new president. According to a November 2023 report by The Washington Post that cites anonymous sources, Jeffrey Clark (a former Trump official who sought to use the Justice Department to help Trump's efforts to overturn 2020 election results) is leading that work, and the alleged draft executive orders involve the Insurrection Act — a law last updated in 1871 that allows the president to deploy the military for domestic law enforcement. Speaking to the Post, a Heritage spokesperson denied that accusation. (We were unable to independently corroborate The Washington Post's reporting due to its anonymous sourcing and our unsuccessful attempts to interview members of The Heritage Foundation.)

While many of Project 2025's proposals simply need the president's executive order to become reality, others would need Congressional approval, even as the Project seeks to expand presidential authority. In other words, lawmakers would need to write and approve legislation that details the changes to the government's existing structure, or establishes new systems. Come November, voters will choose who will fill  435 seats in the Republican-led House and 34 positions  in the Senate.

Key Points of The Roughly 1,000-Page Document

Speaking to Politico , Russell Vought, who served as the director of the Office of Management and Budget under Trump and is now a leading adviser for Project 2025, once described the effort as "more systematic than it is just about Trump," adding, "We have to be thinking mechanically about how to take these institutions over" in reference to federal departments.

Project 2025's document lays out in great detail how supporters want to do that. As of early June 2024, about 855,000 people had downloaded the document, The New York Times reported . 

Among its numerous recommendations, it calls for the following (in no particular order):

• Changing how the FBI operates. According to the plan, the agency is "completely out of control," and the next conservative administration should restore its reputation by stopping investigations that are supposedly "unlawful or contrary to the national interest." Also, the document calls for legislation that would eliminate term limits for the FBI's director and require that person to answer to the president. 
• Eliminating the Department of Education. The plan explicitly proposes, "Federal education policy should be limited and, ultimately, the federal Department of Education should be eliminated." The report also calls for bans on so-called " critical race theory" (CRT) and "gender ideology" lessons in public schools, asking for legislation that would require educators who share such material to register as sex offenders and be imprisoned. 
• Defunding the Department of Justice. Additionally, the document proposes prosecuting federal election-related charges as criminal, not civil, cases. Otherwise, the document says, "[Voter] registration fraud and unlawful ballot correction will remain federal election offenses that are never appropriately investigated and prosecuted." 
• Reversing Biden-era policies attempting to reduce climate change. The document's authors call for increasing the country's reliance on fossil fuels and withdrawing from efforts to address the climate crisis — such as "offices, programs, and directives designed to advance the Paris Climate Agreement ." 
• Stopping cybersecurity efforts to combat mis- and disinformation. The document recommends the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to stop its efforts to curtail online propaganda campaigns, arguing the federal government should not make judgment calls on what's true and what isn't.
• Changing immigration policies. Authors want the federal government to deprioritize DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), the program that temporarily delays the deportation of immigrants without documentation who came to the U.S. as children; phase out temporary work-visa programs that allow seasonal employers to hire foreign workers; impose financial punishments on so-called "sanctuary cities" that do not follow federal immigration laws, and divert tax dollars toward security at America's border with Mexico. (While the Biden campaign claims Project 2025 calls for "ripping mothers away from their children" at the border, there's no explicit mention of separating families. Rather, it calls for stronger enforcement of laws governing the detainment of immigrants with criminal records and restricting an existing program that tracks people in deportation proceedings instead of incarcerating them. In some cases, those changes could possibly play a role in border control agents detaining a parent while their child continues with immigration proceedings.)
• Restricting access to abortion. The plan wants the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to stop promoting abortion as health care. Additionally, Project 2025 recommends the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to stop promoting, and approving, requests for manufacturing abortion pills. "Alternative options to abortion, especially adoption, should receive federal and state support," the document states.
• Removing LGBTQ+ protections. The plan calls for abolishing the Gender Policy Council , a Biden-created department within the White House that aims to "advance equity in government policy for those who face discrimination." Also, the proposal wants the federal government to remove terms such as "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" from records and policies, as well as rescind policies that prohibit discrimination on the basis of "sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, and sex characteristics."
• Cutting ties completely with China. For instance, the document advocates for restricting people's access to TikTok because of its China-based parent company; prohibiting Confucius Institutes, cultural institutions at colleges and universities funded by the Chinese government, and blocking other Chinese entities from partnering with U.S. companies. 
• Reversing protections against discrimination in housing. The Biden campaign emails reference a portion of the document that calls for repealing a decades-old policy—strengthened under Biden—that attempts to prevent discrimination and reduce racial disparities in housing. Project 2025 also recommends making it easier to sell off homes used for public housing — a benefit to real estate developers — but result in fewer cheap housing options for poor and low-income families. 

Here's a PDF of the full report :

(www.project2025.org)

Changing Federal Job Classifications 

To execute the above-listed objectives, the roughly 1,000-page document calls for a federal government operated by political appointees equipped to "carry out the President's desires." 

Put another way, Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation, said in a July 2023 interview with The New York Times that Project 2025 leaders want to dismantle independent federal agencies that do not answer to the president. Then, they want to fill positions with people who subscribe to conservative politics — including jobs that are currently merit-based hires, not politically appointed.

Under the current system, the federal government's administrative sector is made up of two employee groups: political appointees and career civil servants. When a new administration takes over the Oval Office, it selects similarly minded people to fill high-ranking positions (political appointees), and those people leave the jobs when a new president takes over. According to the Brookings Institution , a public policy think tank, around 4,000 political appointees run the executive branch.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of positions that run day-to-day operations are hired through a merit-based system — that is, a hiring process that is designed to prioritize applicants' specialized expertise or experience , not their personal beliefs or affiliations. Those people are career civil servants. 

Project 2025 proposes turning up to 50,000 career civil servant jobs into politically appointed positions. 

To do that, Project 2025 wants the president to reissue Schedule F, a Trump-era executive order that Biden rescinded when he became president. Generally speaking, the order would recategorize career civil servants into at-will employees, giving higher-level workers the ability to terminate employment for any reason without warning and fill those jobs with new people.

Additionally, Project 2025 recommends revamping the existing appeals process for employee dismissals, arguing the current system prevents managers from firing or hiring the right employees. 

The plan also proposes a freeze on hiring top-career civil service positions at the beginning of the administration. By doing so, the plan argues, the new administration will prevent today's administration's leaders (later on "outgoing" political appointees) from "burrowing-in"— that is, hiring left-leaning career bureaucrats across federal agencies for the purpose of undermining the next president. 

Keeping Track of Potential Employees' Opinions

In addition to expanding government leaders' abilities to hire and fire at will, Project 2025 calls for a new federal database to gather information on potential new hires. The database contains people's answers to questions on social issues , such as abortion and immigration, allowing for department leaders to easily fill job vacancies with applicants who lean conservative.

"Our current executive branch was conceived of by liberals for the purpose of promulgating liberal policies," John  McEntee , who is leading Project 2025's personnel database project, told The New York Times in mid-2023, citing then-U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's (who was a Democrat) 1930s New Deal as the last major reorientation of the government. "There is no way to make the existing structure function in a conservative manner. It's not enough to get the personnel right. What's necessary is a complete system overhaul." 

By submitting resumes and answering questionnaires , applicants sign up to be vetted by Project 2025 leaders. According to the questionnaire , participants answer whether they "agree" or "disagree" with statements such as, "Life has a right to legal protection from conception to natural death," and "The U.S. should increase legal immigration."

If the participants pass that screening, Project 2025 intends to recommend them to department leaders for hiring. (We are unable to determine what would happen with applicants' data if Trump does not win the 2024 election, or if his potential administration does not want to use it.)

Project 2025 leaders partnered with technology company Oracle to set up the system, according to The New York Times . Several thousand potential recruits had applied, as of April 2023. 

Former presidents have established similar systems, including Barack Obama, according to Kevin Kosar, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a center-right public policy think tank. "They [The Obama administration] created a massive online jobs bank , where you could apply."

Also, during Obama's first term (January 2009 - January 2017), his administration required extensive vetting of applicants for high-ranking, politically appointed positions. Like Project 2025's program, that process included a questionnaire. That form asked participants to elaborate on past public statements, social media posts and potential conflicts of interests, as well as share things about their personal lives , like whether they own guns. (We found no evidence of the Obama administration circulating a similar questionnaire during his second term.)

Asked about that Obama-era questionnaire, a Biden aide said it was not comparable to Project 2025's system. The latter was a "loyalty test" to Trump, the aide said, while Obama's survey was more of a background check.

Trump Hasn't Publicly Endorsed Project 2025

Many former Trump administration members and current allies are working on the initiative. 

For example, the Center for Renewing America (CRA) — a think tank that formed in 2021 with ties to Trump through its founder, Russell Vought — is a "coalition partner." Vought was the director of the Office of Management and Budget when Trump was president. Should Project 2025 be a part of the next presidential administration, Vought will be in charge of implementing  its proposals, according to Politico. (In November 2023, The Washington Post reported he was in regular contact with Trump and could be a candidate for a high-ranking position in his potential future administration.) Also, Vought is policy director for the 2024 Republican National Convention's Platform Committee.

Reportedly , some people affiliated with Project 2025 are assisting Trump's reelection campaign behind the scenes.

(The groups that conceptualized, or are currently pushing, Project 2025 include a number of former Trump administration members and current allies.)

However, in terms of public-facing actions, Trump hasn't officially connected himself to the initiative. In speeches at campaign rallies and interviews, he hasn't mentioned Project 2025, and, on July 5, 2024 , he attempted to publicly distance himself by posting on Truth Social (his social media site):

I know nothing about Project 2025. I have no idea who is behind it. I disagree with some of the things they're saying and some of the things they're saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them.

Trump's campaign is at the very least aware of the initiative. Campaign officials once told Politico Project 2025's goals to restructure government, which are outlined in a publicly available document , indeed align with Trump's campaign promises.

But in a November 2023 statement, the Trump campaign said: "The efforts by various non-profit groups are certainly appreciated and can be enormously helpful. However, none of these groups or individuals speak for President Trump or his campaign." Without naming Project 2025, they said all policy statements from "external allies" are just "recommendations."

Concurrently, in an interview with the conservative outlet The Daily Wire , a Project 2025 representative said the Trump campaign and Project are separate "for now."  McEntee , a former Trump staffer and leader of Project 2025's personnel database project, said : 

I think the candidate and the campaign need to keep their eye on the ball. They need to be totally focused on winning. We're totally focused on what happens after [...] Obviously, there will need to be coordination and the president and his team will announce an official transition this summer, and we're gonna integrate a lot of our work with them. 

That said, given overlap between Project 2025's proposals and the Trump campaign's agenda , political analysts and the Biden campaign believe the coalition's effort is a good indication of Trump's vision for a second term. Among the similarities are proposals to change how the administration fills tens of thousands of government jobs and overhaul  the DOJ. According to The Heritage Foundation's own reporting, Trump adopted and seriously considered about two-thirds of the organization's policy prescriptions in 2018, for example.

In an interview with Snopes, James Singer, a Biden campaign spokesperson, said:

Project 2025 is the extreme policy and personnel playbook for Trump's second term that should scare the hell out of any American voter. The Trump team's pathetic denials fall flat when Project 2025 staff and leadership are saying they are connected to the Trump team, leading the RNC policy platform and part of Trump's debate prep, campaign, and inner circle.

But the extent to which Project 2025 leaders and Trump campaign officials are communicating is unclear. According to Kosar, at the American Enterprise Institute, no one outside of the two circles knows how closely they're working together. "[What] is the level of coordination? We have no idea." 

From the view of Cecilia Esterline, an immigration research analyst at the Niskanen Center, a think tank  with libertarian-right roots, Project 2025 is a good indicator of Trump's plans for a potential second term. "Given the people involved putting their names on this and the author portions of this report, and the success of [past] implementation, it's a good indicator of where Trump is at."

The Forces Behind Project 2025

Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts launched Project 2025 in April 2022, a few months before Trump officially announced his reelection campaign.

Since then, the number of groups backing the initiative has grown. As of now, Project 2025's advisory board and so-called "coalition partners" include: the Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI), a nonprofit that aims to connect conservative applicants to congressional jobs and is led by Trump's former chief of staff, Mark Meadows; Turning Point USA, a far-right student advocacy group that is led by Charlie Kirk; America First Legal , a legal advocacy group that supports conservative-backed lawsuits and is led by Trump stalwart Stephen Miller. (According to a June 2024 Politico report, Miller was part of private meetings with Trump to help him prepare for upcoming televised debates against Biden.) 

Furthermore, in May 2024, Reuters interviewed what the news outlet described as unnamed Trump allies working on a plan to restructure the Department of Justice (DOJ) and fill currently nonpartisan jobs there with people who identify as conservatives. While the allies group wasn't named, Reuters reported it was tied to Project 2025. 

Lastly, many authors of the roughly 1,000-page document outlining Project 2025's policy proposals have connections to Trump. They include Ben Carson , William Perry Pendley , Jonathan Berry , Diana Furchtgott-Roth , Rick Dearborn , Adam Candeub , Ken Cuccinelli , Mandy Gunasekara , Dennis Dean Kirk , Gene Hamilton , Christopher Miller , Bernard L. McNamee , Mora Namdar , Peter Navarro , Roger Severino , Paul Dans , Kevin Roberts , among others. 

These Types of Pre-Election Efforts Aren't Uncommon

In the months or years before U.S. presidential elections, it's routine for nonprofit research groups to prepare plans for a potential presidential transition, according to Landon Storrs, a political history professor at the University of Iowa. 

And, according to Kosar, numerous think tanks want Trump's ear as he plans his potential return to the White House. "Whenever there is a new executive coming into the White House, [many] groups are trying to get in there."

According to the Heritage Foundation's website , the organization mostly operates on individual donations and does not take money from the government. However, how exactly it divvies up its money for Project 2025 was unclear. The New York Times reported Project 2025 was a $22 million operation.

Project 2025 authors built their proposals on an idea popular during former President Ronald Reagan's time: the "unitary executive theory." That's the belief that Article II of the U.S. Constitution gives the president complete power over the federal bureaucracy and all levels of government report to him. 

In 1980, the Heritage Foundation developed similar policy prescriptions for Reagan, who was a presidential candidate at the time. Some of the organization's recommendations aligned with Reagan's campaign promises , and, when he later assumed office, he put the ideas to action. Heritage once described its effort as putting "the conservative movement and Reagan on the same page."

However, according to Politico , the present-day initiative by the Heritage Foundation was more "ambitious" than any other such proposal. The New York Times  said Project 2025 was operating at "a scale never attempted before in conservative politics." Its efforts are a contrast to the 1930s Democrat-led New Deal under then-U.S. President Roosevelt, which gave the federal government an unprecedented role in social and economic affairs on the belief that it would get the country out of the Great Depression.

Critics' Logistical Concerns, Worries

If some of Project 2025's ideas turn into formal policy recommendations or laws, experts in government and history have concerns over how they could be implemented. Such drastic changes would come with big logistical hurdles and have a ripple effect on agencies overseeing day-to-day governance, several such experts said. 

For example, Project 2025's proposal to reclassify tens of thousands of federal workers' positions — that is, change career bureaucrats into jobs that can be politically appointed — would have widespread effects, according to Storrs, of the University of Iowa. She said:

When [Project 2025's] intention is to install officials based on their loyalty to the president rather than on their qualifications, [the result] is even more damaging to effective administration. [...] The President already has authority over who heads the agencies. But below them, people are simply trying to collect taxes, get social security checks out — there is a lot that shouldn't be disrupted.

Kosar, of the American Enterprise Institute, expressed concern over skills required for jobs that aren't currently appointed. "These positions have a serious degree of expertise attached. You can't just plug in a private sector businessman into the department of transportation. It's going to be a challenge to match the people and the competencies and the expertise." 

Esterline, the Niskanen Center analyst, said with presidential administrations changing every four to eight years, government agencies rely on the expertise of continually employed civil servants — employees with institutional knowledge — to make the transitions as smooth as possible. "[If] we suddenly disrupt that balance of political appointees to civil servants, it will be a much rougher transition." 

Among other aspects of Project 2025, Esterline is attempting to raise the alarm on its prescriptions for specific regulatory changes. "[Project 2025] is a meticulous outline of how they will crumple the system simultaneously through minute changes."

Meanwhile, some former government officials are particularly concerned about the initiative's plans for the DOJ and FBI. For instance, in an interview for The Guardian , Michael Bromwich, a former DOJ inspector general, said the proposals to turn the departments into "instruments" to fulfill Trump's political agenda "should send shivers down the spine of anyone who cares about the rule of law."

Overall, critics including legal experts and former government employees have zeroed in on Project 2025's goal to give the executive branch more power, describing it as a precursor to authoritarianism.

However, the initiative's push to increase executive power may be part of a deeper trend in American politics, Peter Strauss, a professor at Columbia Law School, said in a  lecture  on Faculti, a research video platform. He said momentum to increase executive authority has been steadily increasing over many presidential administrations: 

We have seen in the United States a steadily expanding presidential claim of authority to control not only tenure but also ordinary acts of government. This has been happening at least since the presidency of Ronald Reagan and it reached a peak with President Trump and his first term, and he's promised that he's going back there. 

Our Reporting

For this report, we repeatedly tried to interview representatives of the Heritage Foundation — the conservative think tank that conceptualized Project 2025 — as well as the Trump campaign and other supporters of the effort. All either declined to be interviewed or did not respond to our inquiries. 

For example, we reached out to dozens of groups on Project 2025's advisory board — a collection of groups under the Heritage Foundation's oversight that have co-signed the effort, given feedback on its proposals or promoted it to government officials. The groups include Center for Renewing America , Turning Point USA , The American Conservative , and  American Cornerstone Institute . We asked the organizations about the nature of their involvement in the initiative, proposals they support, and more. As of this writing, none has responded.

After we initially reached out to the Heritage Foundation for this story, a spokesperson responded asking for more specifics on our reporting. We responded with key points, including requests to comment on project leaders' communication with former U.S. President Donald Trump, concerns from legal experts about the initiative's proposed changes and general criticism. The Heritage Foundation did not respond to that message. Later, after informing the organization of our writing deadline, a spokesperson said no one was available.

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July 5, 2024: This post was updated to include Trump's July 5, 2024, post on Truth Social.

By Nur Ibrahim

Nur Nasreen Ibrahim is a reporter with experience working in television, international news coverage, fact checking, and creative writing.

By Aleksandra Wrona

Aleksandra Wrona is a reporting fellow for Snopes, based in the Warsaw area.

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The Personal Statement Topics Ivy League Hopefuls Should Avoid

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Yale University

A compelling personal statement is a critical component of an Ivy League application, as it offers students the unique opportunity to showcase their personality, experiences, and aspirations. Kickstarting the writing process in the summer can give students a critical advantage in the admissions process, allowing them more time to brainstorm, edit, and polish standout essays. However, as students begin drafting their essays this summer, they should bear in mind that selecting the right topic is crucial to writing a successful essay. Particularly for students with Ivy League aspirations, submitting an essay that is cliche, unoriginal, or inauthentic can make the difference between standing out to admissions officers or blending into the sea of other applicants.

As ambitious students embark on the college application process, here are the personal statement topics they should avoid:

1. The Trauma Dump

Many students overcome significant hurdles by the time they begin the college application process, and some assume that the grisliest and most traumatic stories will attract attention and sympathy from admissions committees. While vulnerability can be powerful, sharing overly personal or sensitive information can make readers uncomfortable and shift focus away from a student’s unique strengths. Students should embrace authenticity and be honest about the struggles they have faced on their path to college, while still recognizing that the personal statement is a professional piece of writing, not a diary entry. Students should first consider why they want to share a particular tragic or traumatic experience and how that story might lend insight into the kind of student and community member they will be on campus. As a general rule, if the story will truly enrich the admissions committee’s understanding of their candidacy, students should thoughtfully include it; if it is a means of proving that they are more deserving or seeking to engender pity, students should consider selecting a different topic. Students should adopt a similar, critical approach as they write about difficult or sensitive topics in their supplemental essays, excluding unnecessary detail and focusing on how the experience shaped who they are today.

2. The Travelogue

Travel experiences can be enriching, but essays that merely recount a trip to a foreign country without deeper reflection often fall flat. Additionally, travel stories can often unintentionally convey white saviorism , particularly if students are recounting experiences from their charity work or mission trips in a foreign place. If a student does wish to write about an experience from their travels, they should prioritize depth not breadth—the personal statement is not the place to detail an entire itinerary or document every aspect of a trip. Instead, students should focus on one specific and meaningful experience from their travels with vivid detail and creative storytelling, expounding on how the event changed their worldview, instilled new values, or inspired their future goals.

3. The Superhero Narrative

Ivy League and other top colleges are looking for students who are introspective and teachable—no applicant is perfect (admissions officers know this!). Therefore, it’s crucial that students be aware of their strengths and weaknesses, and open about the areas in which they hope to grow. They should avoid grandiose narratives in which they cast themselves as flawless heroes. While students should seek to put their best foot forward, depicting themselves as protagonists who single-handedly resolve complex issues can make them appear exaggerated and lacking in humility. For instance, rather than telling the story about being the sole onlooker to stand up for a peer being bullied at the lunch table, perhaps a student could share about an experience that emboldened them to advocate for themselves and others. Doing so will add dimension and dynamism to their essay, rather than convey a static story of heroism.

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Similarly, many students feel compelled to declare their intention to solve global issues like world hunger or climate change. While noble, these proclamations can come across as unrealistic and insincere, and they can distract from the tangible achievements and experiences that a student brings to the table. Instead, applicants should focus on demonstrable steps they’ve taken or plan to take within their local community to enact positive change, demonstrating their commitment and practical approach to making a difference. For instance, instead of stating a desire to eradicate poverty, students could describe their extended involvement in a local charity and how it has helped them to discover their values and actualize their passions.

5. The Sports Story

While sports can teach valuable lessons, essays that focus solely on athletic achievements or the importance of a particular game can be overdone and lack depth. Admissions officers have read countless essays about students scoring the winning goal, dealing with the hardship of an injury, or learning teamwork from sports. Students should keep in mind that the personal essay should relay a story that only they can tell—perhaps a student has a particularly unique story about bringing competitive pickleball to their high school and uniting unlikely friend groups or starting a community initiative to repair and donate golf gear for students who couldn’t otherwise afford to play. However, if their sports-related essay could have been written by any high school point guard or soccer team captain, it’s time to brainstorm new ideas.

6. The Pick-Me Monologue

Students may feel the need to list their accomplishments and standout qualities in an effort to appear impressive to Ivy League admissions officers. This removes any depth, introspection, and creativity from a student’s essay and flattens their experiences to line items on a resume. Admissions officers already have students’ Activities Lists and resumes; the personal statement should add texture and dimension to their applications, revealing aspects of their character, values and voice not otherwise obvious through the quantitative aspects of their applications. Instead of listing all of their extracurricular involvements, students should identify a particularly meaningful encounter or event they experienced through one of the activities that matters most to them, and reflect on the ways in which their participation impacted their development as a student and person.

7. The Pandemic Sob Story

The Covid-19 pandemic was a traumatic and formative experience for many students, and it is therefore understandable that applicants draw inspiration from these transformative years as they choose their essay topics. However, while the pandemic affected individuals differently, an essay about the difficulties faced during this time will likely come across as unoriginal and generic. Admissions officers have likely read hundreds of essays about remote learning challenges, social isolation, and the general disruptions caused by Covid-19. These narratives can start to blend together, making it difficult for any single essay to stand out. Instead of centering the essay on the pandemic's challenges, students should consider how they adapted, grew, or made a positive impact during this time. For example, rather than writing about the difficulties of remote learning, a student could describe how they created a virtual study group to support classmates struggling with online classes. Similarly, an applicant might write about developing a new skill such as coding or painting during lockdown and how this pursuit has influenced their academic or career goals. Focusing on resilience, innovation, and personal development can make for a more compelling narrative.

Crafting a standout personal statement requires dedicated time, careful thought, and honest reflection. The most impactful essays are those that toe the lines between vulnerability and professionalism, introspection and action, championing one’s strengths and acknowledging weaknesses. Starting early and striving to avoid overused and unoriginal topics will level up a student’s essay and increase their chances of standing out.

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Oklahoma’s superintendent orders public schools to teach the Bible – relying on controversial views about religious freedom

Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Wayne State University

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In the days since Oklahoma’s state superintendent, Ryan Walters, ordered school districts to teach the Bible , he’s been defending his mandate .

For example, he claimed in an interview on NewsNation that the Bible had “been removed from classrooms, and we’re saying, listen, we’re proud to be the first state to bring it back.”

In reality, U.S. federal law has never prevented public schools from including the Bible as an appropriate aid in the teaching of secular subjects. Rather, what current Supreme Court precedent forbids is use of the Bible as part of religious training in public schools.

Walters’ mandate – sent to districts on June 27, 2024 – seems to blur this line between secular and religious instruction. It also contributes to a larger trend of state officials striving to weaken the boundaries between religion and state.

Another prominent example is the new law in Louisiana requiring every public school classroom to display the Ten Commandments. This law has already generated a lawsuit from civil rights groups.

As someone who studies religious liberty law , I see these state initiatives as part of a larger push to increase the presence of Christianity in the public sphere and to challenge constitutional protections for religious freedom.

Secular vs. religious use

The major Supreme Court case dealing with Bible reading in public schools is Abbington v. Schempp , which was decided in 1963.

At issue was a Pennsylvania law, enacted in 1913, requiring that “At least ten verses from the Holy Bible shall be read, without comment, at the opening of each public school on each school day.” The law allowed children to be excused at their parents’ request.

The Schempp family, whose children attended Pennsylvania public schools, sued on the grounds that the law violated the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution .

In an 8-1 decision, the Supreme Court agreed that the law violated the First Amendment’s establishment clause , which forbids government from making any law “respecting an establishment of religion.”

Originally, the establishment clause applied only to the federal government. That changed after the ratification of the 14th Amendment in 1868 . The Supreme Court has interpreted the 14th Amendment as requiring state governments , including public schools , to abide by most of the Bill of Rights.

In the Pennsylvania case, the Supreme Court clarified that public school lessons involving the Bible or religion can be constitutional “when presented objectively as part of a secular program of education.” For example, religious texts can be used in classrooms as part of a comparative religion lesson, or when studied as literature.

Crucially, however, the court found that the Pennsylvania law violated the establishment clause because its purpose was religious, not secular. The daily Bible reading constituted “a religious ceremony” that “was intended by the State to be so,” whether or not children were allowed to be excused.

Christian nationalism

Messaging about the new mandate blurs the distinction between secular and religious Bible instruction.

For example, in Walters’ memo instructing schools to teach the Bible , he states that “The Bible is one of the most historically significant books and a cornerstone of Western civilization, along with the Ten Commandments. They will be referenced as an appropriate study of history, civilization, ethics, comparative religion, or the like, as well as for their substantial influence on our nation’s founders and the foundational principles of our Constitution.”

Similarly, in an announcement about the mandate, he claimed that the Bible was “a necessary historical document to teach our kids about the history of this country, to have a complete understanding of Western civilization, to have an understanding of the basis of our legal system.”

These explanations highlight the challenge of differentiating secular and religious uses of the Bible in education. Reading religious texts may provide useful context for some history lessons – for example, in explaining some colonists’ beliefs. Yet arguments that the Bible is central to understanding U.S. history and law are also a pillar of Christian nationalism , which is the belief that Christianity should have a privileged place in politics, law and society in the U.S. because “America is a Christian nation.”

Many scholars reject this controversial view of history , arguing, for example, that it misrepresents the founders’ religious and political views .

Yet this belief has been gaining momentum within the U.S. political right. As Yale sociologist Philip Gorski has noted , Christian nationalism “is no longer operating beneath the surface or in the background. It’s now front and center at commanding heights of power.”

According to a 2022 Pew survey , more than 4 in 10 Americans think that “the U.S. should be a Christian nation,” though they disagree about what that means.

The Americans United for Separation of Church and State describes Walters’ mandate as “textbook Christian Nationalism” and has stated that they are “ready to step in” to try to block it.

Part of a trend

Walters’ mandate aligns with a broader movement to challenge limits around religion in public schools. This movement has made significant strides at the Supreme Court in recent years.

For example, in 2022 the court ruled that, in at least some circumstances, public money could be used for tuition at private religious schools in Maine, and that a public high school football coach had the right to pray with his players at the 50-yard line after games.

Another challenge occurred in Oklahoma in 2023, when the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved a charter for a Catholic institution. This move, which was supported by Walters and Gov. Kevin Stitt , would have established the nation’s first religious charter school. The Oklahoma Supreme Court struck down that plan on June 25, 2024 , finding it unconstitutional.

Two days later, Walters sent his memo about Bible instruction. Oklahoma law already permits using the Bible to teach about religion, history and other matters in public schools. Walters’ mandate, however, goes much further. It mandates, rather than merely permits, statewide Bible instruction. “Every teacher, every classroom in the state will have a Bible ,” he pronounced.

Under current precedent, the mandate appears unconstitutional. In order for that to change, Walters’ mandate or another one like it may need to end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

• US Supreme Court
• Religion in schools
• Public schools
• First Amendment
• K-12 education
• Religion and society
• Religion and education

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Chancellor Rachel Reeves is taking immediate action to fix the foundations of our economy

In her first speech as Chancellor, Rachel Reeves laid out plans to rebuild Britain and make every part of the country better off.

Good morning.

Last week, the British people voted for change.

And over the last 72 hours I have begun the work necessary to deliver on that mandate.

Our manifesto was clear:

Sustained economic growth is the only route to the improved prosperity that country needs and the living standards of working people.

Where previous governments have been unwilling to take the difficult decisions to deliver growth…

… or have waited too long to act…

… I will not hesitate.

Growth [political content removed]. It is now our national mission.

There is no time to waste.

This morning I want to outline the first steps [political content removed] taken to fix the foundations of our economy.

So we can rebuild Britain and make every part of our country better off.

But first, let me address the inheritance.

I have repeatedly warned that whoever won the general election would inherit the worst set of circumstances since the Second World War.

What I have seen in the past 72 hours has only confirmed that.

Our economy has been held back by decisions deferred and decisions ducked.

Political self-interest put ahead of the national interest.

A government that put party first, country second.

We face the legacy of fourteen years of chaos and economic irresponsibility.  

That is why over the weekend I instructed Treasury officials to provide an assessment of the state of our spending inheritance so that I can understand the scale of the challenge. And I will present this to Parliament before the summer recess. 

This will be separate from a Budget that will be held later this year – and I will confirm the date of that Budget, alongside a forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility, in due course.

All governments face difficult choices – and I will not shrink from those choices.

Those choices are made harder, however, by the absence of the economic growth necessary to not only balance the books but also to improve living standards.

New Treasury analysis that I requested over the weekend shows that, had the UK economy grown at the average rate of other OECD economies this last 13 years, our economy would have been over £140 billion larger.

This could have brought in an additional £58 billion in tax revenues in the last year alone. That’s money that could have revitalised our schools, our hospitals, and other public services.

Growth requires difficult choices – choices that previous governments have shied away from.

And it now falls to [political content removed] fix the foundations.

We have promised a new approach to growth – one fit for a changed world.

That approach will rest on three pillars – stability, investment, and reform.

Let me turn first to stability.

In the run-up to the general election, I set out the crucial first steps in our economic plans:

To deliver economic stability, so we can grow our economy and keep taxes, inflation and mortgages as low as possible.

And that commitment stands.

I emphasised this commitment in a meeting with the Governor of the Bank of England on Friday, and I will do the same when I meet the chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility this week.

These institutions are guarantors of our economic stability and I will not be playing games at their expense.

Over the weekend I made clear to Treasury officials that the manifesto commitments that we were elected on will be kept to and they will be delivered on.

That includes robust fiscal rules.

And it includes our commitments to no increases in National Insurance, and the basic, higher, or additional rates of Income Tax, or VAT.

Now I know there are some who will argue that the time for caution is past.

[Political content removed].

That a large majority in Parliament means we have the licence to row back on the principles of sound money and economic responsibility.

I know that many of you aren’t used to hearing this after recent years. But I believe that the promises that a party is elected on should be delivered on in government and we will do so.

We do not take lightly the trust of voters who have been burned too often by incompetence, irresponsibility, and recklessness.

And to investors and businesses who have spent fourteen years doubting whether Britain is a safe place to invest, then let me tell you:

After fourteen years, Britain has a stable government. A government that respects business, wants to partner with business, and is open for business.

In an uncertain world, Britain is a place to do business.

Let me turn to how we will unlock private investment that we so desperately need.

[Political content removed] …plans to launch a new National Wealth Fund, with a remit to invest – and so to catalyse private sector investment – in new and growing industries.

And in March, the former governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, agreed to lead a Taskforce on the establishment of a new National Wealth Fund.

I can tell you today that I have received the report from that Taskforce, and I will be announcing the next steps in short order.

Alongside investment must come reform.

Because the question is not whether we want growth, but how strong is our resolve – how prepared are we to make hard choices and face down the vested interests;

How willing, even, to risk short-term political pain to fix Britain’s foundations.

The story of the last fourteen years has been a refusal to confront the tough and responsible decisions that are demanded.

This government will be different.

And there is no time to waste.

Nowhere is decisive reform needed more urgently than in the case of our planning system.

Planning reform has become a byword for political timidity in the face of vested interests and a graveyard of economic ambition.

Our antiquated planning system leaves too many important projects getting tied up in years and years of red tape before shovels ever get into the ground.

We promised to put planning reform at the centre of our political argument – and we did.

We said we would grasp the nettle of planning reform – and we are doing so.

Today I can tell you that work is underway.

Over the weekend, I met with the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister to agree the urgent action needed to fix our planning system.

Today, alongside the Deputy Prime Minister, I am taking immediate action to deliver this [political content removed] government’s mission to kickstart economic growth;

And to take the urgent steps necessary to build the infrastructure that we need, including one and a half million homes over the next five years.

The system needs a new signal. This is that signal.

First, we will reform the National Planning Policy Framework, consulting on a new growth-focused approach to the planning system before the end of the month, including restoring mandatory housing targets.

And, as of today, we are ending the absurd ban on new onshore wind in England. We will also go further and consult on bringing onshore wind back into the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects regime, meaning decisions on large developments will be taken nationally not locally.

Second, we will give priority to energy projects in the system to ensure they make swift progress…

… and we will build on the spatial plan for Energy by expanding this to other infrastructure sectors.  

Third, we will create a new taskforce to accelerate stalled housing sites in our country…

…beginning with Liverpool Central Docks, Worcester Parkway, Northstowe and Langley Sutton Coldfield, representing more than 14,000 homes.

Fourth, we will also support local authorities with 300 additional planning officers across the country.

Fifth, if we are to put growth at the centre of our planning system, that means changes not only to the system itself, but to the way that ministers use our powers for direct intervention.

The Deputy Prime Minister has said that when she intervenes in the economic planning system, the benefit of development will be a central consideration and that she will not hesitate to review an application where the potential gain for the regional and national economies warrant it.

… and I welcome her decision to recover two planning appeals already, for data centres in Buckinghamshire and in Hertfordshire.

To facilitate this new approach, the Deputy Prime Minister will also write to local mayors and the Office for Investment to ensure that any investment opportunity with important planning considerations that comes across their desks is brought to her attention and also to mine.

The Deputy Prime Minister will also write to Local Planning Authorities alongside the National Planning Policy Framework consultation, making clear what will now be expected of them…

…including universal coverage of local plans, and reviews of greenbelt boundaries. These will prioritise Brownfield and grey belt land for development to meet housing targets where needed.

And our golden rules will make sure the development this frees up will allow us to deliver thousands of the affordable homes too, including more for social rent.

Sixth, as well as unlocking new housing, we will also reform the planning system to deliver the infrastructure that our country needs.

Together, [political content removed] we will ask the Secretaries of State for Transport and Energy Security and Net Zero to prioritise decisions on infrastructure projects that have been sitting unresolved for far too long.

And finally, we will set out new policy intentions for critical infrastructure in the coming months, ahead of updating relevant National Policy Statements within the year.

I know that there will be opposition to this.

I’m not naïve to that;

And we must acknowledge that trade offs always exist: any development may have environmental consequences, place pressure on services, and rouse voices of local opposition.

But we will not succumb to a status quo which responds to the existence of trade-offs by always saying no, and relegates the national interest below other priorities.

We will make those tough decisions, to realise that mandate. 

Be in no doubt – we are going to get Britain building again.

We are going to get Britain’s economy growing again.

We will end the prevarication and make the necessary choices to fix the foundations:

We will introduce a modern industrial strategy, to create good work and drive investment in all of our communities.

We will reform our skills system, for a changing world of work.

We will tackle economic inactivity and get people back to work.

We will take on the hard work of reforming our public services, to make them fit for the future.

We will work closely with our national, regional and local leaders to power growth in every part of Britain.

And we will turn our attention to the pensions system, to drive investment in homegrown businesses and deliver greater returns to pension savers.

I know the voters’ trust cannot be repaid through slogans or gimmicks – only through action, only through delivery.

The Treasury I lead is proceeding on that basis.

I was appointed to this post less than 72 hours ago.

Upon my arrival, I told Treasury staff that the work starts straight away.

That work has begun.

I have commissioned and received economic analysis from HMT officials on the lost growth of the past 14 years, which I have set out today.

I have instructed Treasury officials to prepare an assessment of the state of our spending inheritance, to be presented to Parliament before the summer recess.

I have started working with the Prime Minister, to make the necessary preparations for the establishment of a Growth Mission Board, and that board will meet before summer recess, focused squarely on reviving our country’s economic growth and prosperity

I have established a new Growth Delivery Unit here, at the heart of  the Treasury.

I have received the recommendations of the National Wealth Fund Taskforce, and will shortly be announcing next steps.

There is much more to do.

More tough decisions to be taken.

You have put your trust in us.

And we will repay that trust.

The work towards a decade of national renewal has begun.

And we are just getting started.

Thank you very much.

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