Advanced Health Assessment

What you’ll be able to do

• Elicit an accurate focused and/or comprehensive health history with attention to the patient’s unique perspective and experience.

• Perform a comprehensive, evidence-based assessment, incorporating all necessary components of physical evaluation. Assessments should be comprehensive but concise, culturally sensitive, and developmentally guided, while demonstrating compassion and accountability.

• Select basic laboratory and diagnostic testing options and interpret data to augment evidence-based assessment.

• Formulate a differential diagnosis, based on advanced clinical judgement and analysis of data collected from the health history and physical exam.

• Identify a probable primary diagnosis and create a patient-centered, evidence-based plan of care that may include diagnostic testing, collaboration, or referral.

• Document an accurate account of history, physical examination, differential diagnoses, integrative summary, and evidence-based plan of care using effective communication techniques specific to accepted terminology, format, and technology that adheres to the current standards of medical documentation.

• Develop an appropriate plan of care consistent with the advanced nurse role in the management of common symptoms seen across care settings. The plan of care for the client should incorporate physical, cultural, ethnic, developmental, and population-appropriate variations.

• Demonstrate professionalism in the advanced practice nursing role, including accountability, teamwork, initiative, self- appraisal, and integrity.

• Explore the image and role of advanced practice nursing as it integrates advanced assessment, diagnostic reasoning, primary care, rural healthcare, health promotion, and patient education.

Source: UW Guide