How to Write a Nursing Care Plan That Earns Full Marks

Nursing care plans follow ADPIE: Assessment, Diagnosis, Planning, Implementation, Evaluation. Use NANDA-approved diagnoses written as three parts: problem, etiology, signs/symptoms. Goals must be SMART, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound. Interventions need rationales backed by current peer-reviewed nursing literature. The biggest grade-killers: vague goals ('patient will feel better'), unsourced rationales, and interventions that don't match the diagnosis. Always tie everything back to your patient's actual data, instructor graders spot generic plans instantly.