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Our goal at NANDA-I is to develop standardized terminology in nursing, to ensure patient safety through evidence-based care, thereby improving the health care of all people.

That’s why when we receive diagnosis submissions that do not meet the NANDA-I criteria for a nursing diagnosis, we are unable to accept them for standard use. If you have submitted a diagnosis that was not accepted, or if you’re curious about the process and standards for evaluating submissions, keep reading. 

Reasons a Diagnosis Could be Rejected

• The diagnosis was not a clinical judgment that is made by the nurse that is amenable to independent nursing intervention. 
• The diagnosis was submitted via email. We require diagnoses to be submitted via our online form. On that page, you will also see the list of requirements for submission. 

Questions to Ask Yourself Before Submitting

• Are you revising a diagnosis or is it new? 
• Is your diagnosis a human response or is it a sign/symptom?
• Are there current diagnoses that are related to your submission? And if so, what are they and how is this different? 
• Is your diagnosis supported by nursing research evidence?
• What are the axes that you’re using to build your label?
  • Do you have a judgment term that’s clear? 
  • Does the diagnosis require an anatomical location? 
  • Do you have a time element or status of the diagnosis? 

These considerations are critical for developing an evidence-based classification, and many are required for us to meet the International Standards Organization (ISO) Model of Nursing Diagnosis. We also want to make sure that you reviewed the definition of the judgment term you selected and that it really does fit the intent of the diagnosis you were trying to convey.

How to Improve Your Chances of an Accepted Submission

Depending on the type of diagnosis you’re submitting, have your related factors, defining characteristics, risk factors, and associated and at-risk populations ready to go. These explanations will make your submission more likely to be accepted. 

We also ask you to identify nursing outcomes and independent nursing interventions that are specifically aimed at related factors or risk factors whenever possible, unless you are dealing with symptom control, in which case you would intervene on defining characteristics. Also, it is good to remember that if you are only finding interventions that relate to monitoring, supervising, referring, or that require a medical protocol/order set, that’s a pretty good indication that the diagnosis is probably not in the nursing domain, but really in the medical domain. If there are not independent nursing interventions identified, then the chances of it being an independent nursing diagnosis is reduced. 
Remember, we do require that you use the online form for submission rather than using email submission when you’re submitting a new or revised diagnosis. Get started right here!