Labor Induction— Initiation or augmentation of labor by mechanical or pharmacological methods

Labor Suppression— Controlling uterine contractions prior to 37 weeks of gestation to prevent preterm birth

Laboratory Data Interpretation— Critical analysis of patient laboratory data in order to assist with clinical decision-making

Lactation Counseling— Use of an interactive helping process to assist in maintenance of successful breastfeeding

Lactation Suppression— Facilitating the cessation of milk production and minimizing breast engorgement after giving birth

Laser Precautions— Limiting the risk of injury to the patient related to use of a laser

Latex Precautions— Reducing the risk of systemic reaction to latex

Learning Facilitation— Promoting the ability to process and comprehend information

Learning Readiness Enhancement— Improving the ability and willingness to receive information

Leech Therapy— Application of medicinal leeches to help drain replanted or transplanted tissue engorged with venous blood

Limit Setting— Establishing the parameters of desirable and acceptable patient behavior

Lower Extremity Monitoring— Collection, analysis, and use of patient data to categorize risk and prevent injury to the lower extremities

Malignant Hyperthermia Precautions— Prevention or reduction of hypermetabolic response to pharmacological agents used during surgery

Massage— Stimulation of the skin and underlying tissues with varying degrees of hand pressure to decrease pain, produce relaxation, and/or improve circulation

Mechanical Ventilation— Use of an artificial device to assist a patient to breathe

Mechanical Ventilatory Weaning— Assisting the patient to breathe without the aid of a mechanical ventilator

Medication Administration— Preparing, giving, and evaluating the effectiveness of prescription and nonprescription drugs

Medication Administration: Ear— Preparing and instilling otic medications

Medication Administration: Enteral— Delivering medications through a tube inserted into the gastrointestinal system

Medication Administration: Eye— Preparing and instilling ophthalmic medications

Medication Administration: Inhalation— Preparing and administering inhaled medications

Medication Administration: Interpleural— Administration of medication through an interpleural catheter for reduction of pain

Medication Administration: Intradermal— Preparing and giving medications via the intradermal route

Medication Administration: Intramuscular (IM)— Preparing and giving medications via the intramuscular route

Medication Administration: Intraosseous— Insertion of a needle through the bone cortex into the medullary cavity for the purpose of short-term, emergency administration of fluid, blood, or medication

Medication Administration: Intraspinal— Administration and monitoring of medication via an established epidural or intrathecal route

Medication Administration: Intravenous (IV)— Preparing and giving medications via the intravenous route

Medication Administration: Nasal— Preparing and giving medications via nasal passages

Medication Administration: Oral— Preparing and giving medications by mouth

Medication Administration: Rectal— Preparing and inserting rectal suppositories

Medication Administration: Skin— Preparing and applying medications to the skin

Medication Administration: Subcutaneous— Preparing and giving medications via the subcutaneous route

Medication Administration: Vaginal— Preparing and inserting vaginal medications

Medication Administration: Ventricular Reservoir— Administration and monitoring of medication through an indwelling catheter into the lateral ventricle of the brain

Medication Management— Facilitation of safe and effective use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs

Medication Prescribing— Prescribing medication for a health problem

Meditation Facilitation— Facilitating a person to alter his/her level of awareness by focusing specifically on an image or thought

Memory Training— Facilitation of memory

Milieu Therapy— Use of people, resources, and events in the patient’s immediate environment to promote optimal psychosocial functioning

Mood Management— Providing for safety, stabilization, recovery, and maintenance of a patient who is experiencing dysfunctionally depressed mood or elevated mood

Multidisciplinary Care Conference— Planning and evaluating patient care with health professionals from other disciplines

Music Therapy— Using music to help achieve a specific change in behavior, feeling, or physiology

Mutual Goal Setting— Collaborating with patient to identify and prioritize care goals, then developing a plan for achieving those goals

Nail Care— Promotion of clean, neat, attractive nails and prevention of skin lesions related to improper care of nails

Nausea Management— Prevention and alleviation of nausea

Neurologic Monitoring— Collection and analysis of patient data to prevent or minimize neurological complications

Newborn Care— Management of neonate during the transition to extrauterine life and subsequent period of stabilization

Newborn Monitoring— Measurement and interpretation of physiologic status of the neonate the first 24 hours after delivery

Nonnutritive Sucking— Provision of sucking opportunities for the infant

Normalization Promotion— Assisting parents and other family members of children with chronic illnesses or disabilities in providing normal life experiences for their children and families

Nutrition Management— Assisting with or providing a balanced dietary intake of foods and fluids

Nutrition Therapy— Administration of food and fluids to support metabolic processes of a patient who is malnourished or at high risk for becoming malnourished

Nutritional Counseling— Use of an interactive helping process focusing on the need for diet modification

Nutritional Monitoring— Collection and analysis of patient data to prevent or minimize malnourishment

Oral Health Maintenance— Maintenance and promotion of oral hygiene and dental health for the patient at risk for developing oral or dental lesions

Oral Health Promotion— Promotion of oral hygiene and dental care for a patient with normal oral and dental health

Oral Health Restoration— Promotion of healing for a patient who has an oral mucosa or dental lesion

Order Transcription— Transferring information from order sheets to the nursing patient care planning and documentation system

Organ Procurement— Guiding families through the donation process to ensure timely retrieval of vital organs and tissue for transplant

Ostomy Care— Maintenance of elimination through a stoma and care of surrounding tissue

Oxygen Therapy— Administration of oxygen and monitoring of its effectiveness

Pacemaker Management: temporary— Temporary support of cardiac pumping through the insertion and use of temporary pacemakers

Pain Management— Alleviation of pain or a reduction in pain to a level of comfort that is acceptable to the patient

Parent Education: Adolescent— Assisting parents to understand and help their adolescent children

Parent Education: Childrearing Family— Assisting parents to understand and promote the physical, psychological, and social growth and development of their toddler, preschool, or school-aged child/children

Parent Education: Infant— Instruction on nurturing and physical care needed during the first year of life

Parenting Promotion— Providing parenting information, support and coordination of comprehensive services to high-risk families

Pass Facilitation— Arranging a leave for a patient from a health care facility

Patient Contracting— Negotiating an agreement with an individual that reinforces a specific behavior change

Patient-Controlled Analgesia (PCA) Assistance— Facilitating patient control of analgesic administration and regulation

Patient Rights Protection— Protection of health care rights of a patient, especially a minor, incapacitated, or incompetent patient unable to make decisions

Peer Review— Systematic evaluation of a peer’s performance compared with professional standards of practice

Pelvic Muscle Exercise— Strengthening and training the levator ani and urogenital muscles through voluntary, repetitive contraction to decrease stress, urge, or mixed types of urinary incontinence

Perineal Care— Maintenance of perineal skin integrity and relief of perineal discomfort

Peripheral Sensation Management— Prevention or minimization of injury or discomfort in the patient with altered sensation

Peripherally Inserted Central (PIC) Catheter Care— Insertion and maintenance of a peripherally inserted central catheter, either midline or centrally located

Peritoneal Dialysis Therapy— Administration and monitoring of dialysis solution into and out of the peritoneal cavity

Pessary Management— Placement and monitoring of a vaginal device for treating stress urinary incontinence, uterine retroversion, genital prolapse, or incompetent cervix

Phlebotomy: Arterial Blood Sample— Obtaining a blood sample from an uncannulated artery to assess oxygen and carbon dioxide levels and acid-base balance

Phlebotomy: Blood Unit Acquisition— Procuring blood and blood products from donors

Phlebotomy: Cannulated Vessel— Aspirating a blood sample through an indwelling vascular catheter for laboratory tests

Phlebotomy: Venous Blood Sample— Removal of a sample of venous blood from an uncannulated vein

Phototherapy: Mood/Sleep Regulation— Administration of doses of bright light in order to elevate mood and/or normalize the body's internal clock

Phototherapy: Neonate— Use of light therapy to reduce bilirubin levels in newborn infants

Physical Restraint— Application, monitoring, and removal of mechanical restraining devices or manual restraints which are used to limit physical mobility of a patient

Physician Support— Collaborating with physicians to provide quality patient care

Pneumatic Tourniquet Precautions— Applying a pneumatic tourniquet while minimizing the potential for patient injury from use of the device

Positioning— Deliberative placement of the patient or a body part to promote physiological and/or psychological well-being

Positioning: Intraoperative— Moving the patient or body part to promote surgical exposure while reducing the risk of discomfort and complications

Positioning: Neurologic— Achievement of optimal, appropriate body alignment for the patient experiencing or at risk for spinal cord injury or vertebrae irritability

Positioning: Wheelchair— Placement of a patient in a properly selected wheelchair to enhance comfort, promote skin integrity, and foster independence

Postanesthesia Care— Monitoring and management of the patient who has recently undergone general or regional anesthesia

Postmortem Care— Providing physical care of the body of an expired patient and support for the family viewing the body

Postpartal Care— Monitoring and management of the patient who has recently given birth

Preceptor: Employee— Assisting and supporting a new or transferred employee through a planned orientation to a specific clinical area

Preceptor: Student— Assisting and supporting learning experiences for a student

Preconception Counseling— Screening and providing information and support to individuals of childbearing age before pregnancy to promote health and reduce risks

Pregnancy Termination Care— Management of the physical and psychological needs of the woman undergoing a spontaneous or elective abortion

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) Management— Alleviation/attenuation of physical and/or behavioral symptoms occurring during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle

Prenatal Care— Monitoring and management of patient during pregnancy to prevent complications of pregnancy and promote a healthy outcome for both mother and infant

Preoperative Coordination— Facilitating preadmission diagnostic testing and preparation of the surgical patient

Preparatory Sensory Information— Describing in concrete and objective terms the typical sensory experiences and events associated with an upcoming stressful health care procedure/treatment

Presence— Being with another, both physically and psychologically, during times of need

Pressure Management— Minimizing pressure to body parts

Pressure Ulcer Care— Facilitation of healing in pressure ulcers

Pressure Ulcer Prevention— Prevention of pressure ulcers for an individual at high risk for developing them

Product Evaluation— Determining the effectiveness of new products or equipment

Program Development— Planning, implementing, and evaluating a coordinated set of activities designed to enhance wellness, or to prevent, reduce, or eliminate one or more health problems for a group or community

Progressive Muscle Relaxation— Facilitating the tensing and releasing of successive muscle groups while attending to the resulting differences in sensation

Prompted Voiding— Promotion of urinary continence through the use of timed verbal toileting reminders and positive social feedback for successful toileting

Prosthesis Care— Care of a removable appliance worn by a patient and the prevention of complications associated with its use

Pruritus Management— Preventing and treating itching

Quality Monitoring— Systematic collection and analysis of an organization’s quality indicators for the purpose of improving patient care

Radiation Therapy Management— Assisting the patient to understand and minimize the side effects of radiation treatments

Rape-Trauma Treatment— Provision of emotional and physical support immediately following a reported rape

Reality Orientation— Promotion of patient’s awareness of personal identity, time, and environment

Recreation Therapy— Purposeful use of recreation to promote relaxation and enhancement of social skills

Rectal Prolapse Management— Prevention and/or manual reduction of rectal prolapse

Referral— Arrangement for services by another care provider or agency

Relaxation Therapy— Use of techniques to encourage and elicit relaxation for the purpose of decreasing undesirable signs and symptoms such as pain, muscle tension, or anxiety

Religious Addiction Prevention— Prevention of a self-imposed controlling religious lifestyle

Religious Ritual Enhancement— Facilitating participation in religious practices

Relocation Stress Reduction— Assisting the individual to prepare for and cope with movement from one equipment to another

Reminiscence Therapy— Using the recall of past events, feelings, and thoughts to facilitate pleasure, quality of life, or adaptation to present circumstances

Reproductive Technology Management— Assisting a patient through the steps of complex infertility treatment

Research Data Collection— Collecting research data

Resiliency Promotion— Assisting individuals, families, and communities in development, use, and strengthening of protective factors to be used in coping with environmental and societal stressors

Respiratory Monitoring— Collection and analysis of patient data to ensure airway patency and adequate gas exchange

Respite Care— Provision of short-term care to provide relief for family caregiver

Resuscitation— Administering emergency measures to sustain life

Resuscitation: Fetus— Administering emergency measures to improve placental perfusion or correct fetal acid-base status

Resuscitation: Neonate— Administering emergency measures to support newborn adaptation to extrauterine life

Risk Identification— Analysis of potential risk factors, determination of health risks, and prioritization of risk reduction strategies for an individual or group

Risk Identification: Childbearing Family— Identification of an individual or family likely to experience difficulties in parenting and prioritization of strategies to prevent parenting problems

Risk Identification: Genetic— Identification and analysis of potential genetic risk factors in an individual, family, or group

Role Enhancement— Assisting a patient, significant other, and/or family to improve relationships by clarifying and supplementing specific role behaviors

Seclusion— Solitary containment in a fully protective environment with close surveillance by nursing staff for purposes of safety or behavior management

Security Enhancement— Intensifying a patient’s sense of physical and psychological safety

Sedation Management— Administration of sedatives, monitoring of the patient's response, and provision of necessary physiological support during a diagnostic or therapeutic procedure

Seizure Management— Care of a patient during a seizure and the postictal state

Seizure Precautions— Prevention or minimization of potential injuries sustained by a patient with a known seizure disorder

Self-Awareness Enhancement— Assisting a patient to explore and understand his/her thoughts, feelings, motivations, and behaviors

Self-Care Assistance— Assisting another to perform activities of daily living

Self-Care Assistance: Bathing/Hygiene— Assisting patient to perform personal hygiene

Self-Care Assistance: Dressing/Grooming— Assisting patient with clothes and makeup

Self-Care Assistance: Feeding— Assisting a person to eat

Self-Care Assistance (IADL)— Assisting and instructing a person to perform instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) needed to function in the home or community

Self-Care Assistance: Toileting— Assisting a patient with limitation of independent movement to learn to change body location

Self-Care Assistance: Transfer— Assisting a person to change body location

Self-Esteem Enhancement— Assisting a patient to increase his/her personal judgment of self-worth

Self-Hypnosis Facilitation— Teaching and monitoring the use of self-initiated hypnotic state for therapeutic benefit

Self-Modification Assistance— Reinforcement of self-directed change initiated by the patient to achieve personally important goals

Self-Responsibility Facilitation— Encouraging a patient to assume more responsibility for own behavior

Sexual Counseling— Use of an interactive helping process focusing on the need to make adjustments in sexual practice or to enhance coping with a sexual event/disorder

Shift Report— Exchanging essential patient care information with other nursing staff at change of shift

Shock Management— Facilitation of the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to systemic tissue with removal of cellular waste products in a patient with severely altered tissue perfusion

Shock Management: Cardiac— Promotion of adequate tissue perfusion for a patient with severely compromised pumping function of the heart

Shock Management: Vasogenic— Promotion of adequate tissue perfusion for a patient with severe loss of vascular tone

Shock Management: Volume— Promotion of adequate tissue perfusion for a patient with severely compromised intravascular volume

Shock Prevention— Detecting and treating a patient at risk for impending shock

Sibling Support— Assisting a sibling to cope with a brother’s or sister’s illness/chronic condition/disability

Skin Care: Donor Site— Prevention of wound complications and promotion of healing at the donor site

Skin Care: Graft Site— Prevention of wound complications and promotion of graft site healing

Skin Care: Topical Treatments— Application of topical substances or manipulation of devices to promote skin integrity and minimize skin breakdown

Skin Surveillance— Collection and analysis of patient data to maintain skin and mucous membrane integrity

Sleep Enhancement— Facilitation of regular sleep/wake cycles

Smoking Cessation Assistance— Helping another to stop smoking

Socialization Enhancement— Facilitation of another person’s ability to interact with others

Specimen Management— Obtaining, preparing, and preserving a specimen for a laboratory test

Spiritual Growth Facilitation— Facilitation of growth in patient’s capacity to identify, connect with, and call upon the source of meaning, purpose, comfort, strength, and hope in his/her life

Spiritual Support— Assisting the patient to feel balance and connection with a greater power

Splinting— Stabilization, immobilization, and/or protection of an injured body part with a supportive appliance

Sports-Injury Prevention: Youth— Reduce the risk of sport-related injury in young athletes

Staff Development— Developing, maintaining, and monitoring competence of staff

Staff Supervision— Facilitating the delivery of high-quality patient care by others

Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Precautions— Reduction of internal and external stimuli or stressors to minimize risk of rebleeding prior to surgery or endovascular procedure to secure ruptured aneurysm

Substance Use Prevention— Prevention of an alcoholic or drug use lifestyle

Substance Use Treatment— Supportive care of patient/family members with physical and psychosocial problems associated with the use of alcohol or drugs

Substance Use Treatment: Alcohol Withdrawal— Care of the patient experiencing sudden cessation of alcohol consumption

Substance Use Treatment: Drug Withdrawal— Care of a patient experiencing drug detoxification

Substance Use Treatment: Overdose— Monitoring, treatment, and emotional support of a patient who has ingested prescription or over-the-counter drugs beyond the therapeutic range

Suicide Prevention— Reducing risk of self-inflicted harm with intent to end life

Supply Management— Ensuring acquisition and maintenance of appropriate items for providing patient care

Support Group— Use of a group environment to provide emotional support and health-related information for members

Support System Enhancement— Facilitation of support to patient by family, friends, and community

Surgical Assistance— Assisting the surgeon/dentist with operative procedures and care of the surgical patient

Surgical Precautions— Minimizing the potential for iatrogenic injury to the patient related to a surgical procedure

Surgical Preparation— Providing care to a patient immediately prior to surgery and verification of required procedures/tests and documentation in the clinical record

Surveillance— Purposeful and ongoing acquisition, interpretation, and synthesis of patient data for clinical decision-making

Surveillance: Community— Purposeful and ongoing acquisition, interpretation, and synthesis of data for decision-making in the community

Surveillance: Late Pregnancy— Purposeful and ongoing acquisition, interpretation, and synthesis of maternal-fetal data for treatment, observation, or admission

Surveillance: Remote Electronic— Purposeful and ongoing acquisition of patient data via electronic modalities (telephone, video, conferencing, e-mail) from distant locations as well as interpretation and synthesis of patient data for clinical decision-making with individuals or populations

Surveillance: Safety— Purposeful and ongoing collection and analysis of information about the patient and the environment for use in promoting and maintaining patient safety

Sustenance Support— Helping a needy individual/family to locate food, clothing, or shelter

Suturing— Approximating edges of a wound using sterile suture material and a needle

Swallowing Therapy— Facilitating swallowing and preventing complications of impaired swallowing

Teaching: Disease Process— Assisting the patient to understand information related to a specific disease process

Teaching: Foot Care— Preparing a patient at risk and/or significant other to provide preventive foot care

Teaching: Group— Development, implementation, and evaluation of a patient-teaching program for a group of individuals experiencing the same health condition

Teaching: Individual— Planning, implementation, and evaluation of a teaching program designed to address a patient’s particular needs

Teaching: Preoperative— Assisting a patient to understand and mentally prepare for surgery and the postoperative recovery period

Teaching: Prescribed Activity/Exercise— Preparing a patient to achieve and/or maintain a prescribed level of activity

Teaching: Prescribed Diet— Preparing a patient to correctly follow a prescribed diet

Teaching: Prescribed Medication— Preparing a patient to safely take prescribed medications and monitor for their effects

Teaching: Procedure/Treatment— Preparing a patient to understand and mentally prepare for a prescribed procedure or treatment

Teaching: Psychomotor Skill— Preparing a patient to perform a psychomotor skill

Teaching: Safe Sex— Providing instruction concerning sexual protection during sexual activity

Teaching: Sexuality— Assisting individuals to understand physical and psychosocial dimensions of sexual growth and development

Teaching: Toilet Training— Instruction on determining the child's readiness and strategies to assist the child to learn independent toileting skills

Technology Management— Use of technical equipment and devices to monitor patient condition or sustain life

Telephone Consultation— Eliciting patient’s concerns, listening, and providing support, information, or teaching in response to patient’s stated concerns, over the telephone

Telephone Follow-up— Providing results of testing or evaluating patient’s response and determining potential for problems as a result of previous treatment, examination, or testing, over the telephone

Temperature Regulation— Attaining and/or maintaining body temperature within a normal range

Temperature Regulation: Intraoperative— Attaining and/or maintaining desired intraoperative body temperature

Therapeutic Play— Purposeful and directive use of toys and other materials to assist children in communicating their perception and knowledge of their world and to help in gaining mastery of their environment

Therapeutic Touch— Attuning to the universal healing field, seeking to act as an instrument for healing influence, and using the natural sensitivity of the hands to gently focus and direct the intervention process

Therapy Group— Application of psychotherapeutic techniques to a group, including the utilization of interactions between members of the group

Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) Administration— Preparation and delivery of nutrients intravenously and monitoring of patient responsiveness

Touch— Providing comfort and communication through purposeful tactile contact

Traction/Immobilization Care— Management of a patient who has traction and/or a stabilizing device to immobilize and stabilize a body part

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)— Stimulation of skin and underlying tissues with controlled, low-voltage electrical vibration via electrodes

Trauma Therapy: Child— Use of an interactive helping process to resolve a trauma experienced by a child

Triage: Disaster— Establishing priorities of patient care for urgent treatment while allocating scarce resources

Triage: Emergency Center— Establishing priorities and initiating treatment for patients in an emergency center

Triage: Telephone— Determining the nature and urgency of a problem(s) and providing directions for the level of care required, over the telephone

Truth Telling— Use of whole truth, partial truth, or decision delay to promote the patient’s self-determination and well-being

Tube Care— Management of a patient with an external drainage device exiting the body

Tube Care: Chest— Management of a patient with an external water-seal drainage device exiting the chest cavity

Tube Care: Gastrointestinal— Management of a patient with a gastrointestinal tube

Tube Care: Umbilical Line— Management of a newborn with an umbilical catheter

Tube Care: Urinary— Management of a patient with urinary drainage equipment

Tube Care: Ventriculostomy/Lumbar Drain— Management of a patient with an external cerebrospinal fluid drainage system

Ultrasonography: Limited Obstetric— Performance of ultrasound exams to determine ovarian, uterine, or fetal status

Unilateral Neglect Management— Protecting and safely reintegrating the affected part of the body while helping the patient adapt to disturbed perceptual abilities

Urinary Bladder Training— Improving bladder function for those with urge incontinence by increasing the bladder’s ability to hold urine and the patient’s ability to suppress urination

Urinary Catheterization— Insertion of a catheter into the bladder for temporary or permanent drainage of urine

Urinary Catheterization: Intermittent— Regular periodic use of a catheter to empty the bladder

Urinary Elimination Management— Maintenance of an optimum urinary elimination pattern

Urinary Habit Training— Establishing a predictable pattern of bladder emptying to prevent incontinence for persons with limited cognitive ability who have urge, stress, or functional incontinence

Urinary Incontinence Care— Assistance in promoting continence and maintaining perineal skin integrity

Urinary Incontinence Care: Enuresis— Promotion of urinary continence in children

Urinary Retention Care— Assistance in relieving bladder distention

Values Clarification— Assisting another to clarify her/his own values in order to facilitate effective decision-making

Vehicle Safety Promotion— Assisting individuals, families, and communities to increase awareness of measures to reduce unintentional injuries in motorized and non-motorized vehicles

Venous Access Devices (VAD) Maintenance— Management of the patient with prolonged venous access via tunneled and non-tunneled (percutaneous) catheters, and implanted ports

Ventilation Assistance— Promotion of an optimal spontaneous breathing pattern that maximizes oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange in the lungs

Visitation Facilitation— Promoting beneficial visits by family and friends

Vital Signs Monitoring— Collection and analysis of cardiovascular, respiratory, and body temperature data to determine and prevent complications

Vomiting Management— Prevention and alleviation of vomiting

Weight Gain Assistance— Facilitating gain of body weight

Weight Management— Facilitating maintenance of optimal body weight and percent body fat

Weight Reduction Assistance— Facilitating loss of weight and/or body fat

Wound Care— Prevention of wound complications and promotion of wound healing

Wound Care: Closed Drainage— Maintenance of a pressure drainage system at the wound site

Wound Irrigation— Flushing of an open wound to cleanse and remove debris and excessive drainage