Which of the following is a correctly stated nursing diagnosis?

Which of the following is a correctly stated nursing diagnosis?

• A. Needs to be fed related to broken arm
• B. Impaired skin integrity related to fecal incontinence
• C. Abnormal breath sounds caused by weak cough reflex
• D. Impaired physical mobility related to arthritis

Answer: (B)

Nursing diagnoses must name a problem that nursing can address and connect it to a related factor that explains why the problem exists. Here, the correctly stated diagnosis is impaired skin integrity related to fecal incontinence. The problem label clearly identifies an actual nursing issue, and the related factor points to a cause nurses can manage. Fecal incontinence creates moisture and irritants that break down skin, so this combination guides appropriate nursing actions such as perineal care, barrier protection, moisture management, and incontinence interventions. The other options don’t fit as nursing diagnoses: needs to be fed reads like a task or intervention rather than a problem label; abnormal breath sounds is a clinical finding and would need to be reframed as a nursing diagnosis like ineffective airway clearance related to weak cough reflex; and impaired physical mobility related to arthritis is not as precise, since the etiologic factor should be something nurses can address (pain/stiffness/limited ROM) rather than naming the disease itself.

Nursing diagnoses must name a problem that nursing can address and connect it to a related factor that explains why the problem exists. Here, the correctly stated diagnosis is impaired skin integrity related to fecal incontinence. The problem label clearly identifies an actual nursing issue, and the related factor points to a cause nurses can manage. Fecal incontinence creates moisture and irritants that break down skin, so this combination guides appropriate nursing actions such as perineal care, barrier protection, moisture management, and incontinence interventions.

The other options don’t fit as nursing diagnoses: needs to be fed reads like a task or intervention rather than a problem label; abnormal breath sounds is a clinical finding and would need to be reframed as a nursing diagnosis like ineffective airway clearance related to weak cough reflex; and impaired physical mobility related to arthritis is not as precise, since the etiologic factor should be something nurses can address (pain/stiffness/limited ROM) rather than naming the disease itself.