Respiratory nursing diagnoses: practicing nurses' selection of defining characteristics

One-hundred medical/surgical nurses from two hospitals participated in a study designed to determine which defining characteristics professional nurses working in acute-care settings associated with each of the three respiratory nursing diagnoses identified by the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA). All NANDA defining characteristics for impaired gas exchange and ineffective airway clearance were selected by at least 63% and 67% of the study participants, respectively. Thirteen of the 15 NANDA defining characteristics for ineffective breathing pattern were selected by at least 68% of the study participants. Two characteristics of ineffective breathing pattern identified by NANDA, cough and fremitus, were selected by only 47% and 45% of respondents. This study was the first in a series of studies intended to validate the respiratory nursing diagnoses.