[The role of the physical examination in clinical assessment: a useful skill for professional nursing]

Clinical Assessment by professional nurses relies upon appropriate gathering and interpretation of relevant subjective and objective biopsychosocial data. The physical examination provides primary objective data through the use of four techniques: inspection, percussion, palpation, and auscultation. In many countries the physical examination of patients is regarded as a standard source of clinical information for nurses. In daily nursing practice problem-focused physical examination is the rule, though complete physical examinations are commonly used in advanced nursing practice at the Master level. In this article the role of physical examination in professional nursing assessment is described, physical examination techniques are introduced and illustrated via case examples. The importance of including assessment competencies in academic nursing education is emphasized.