Nursing Outcomes Classification
The Nursing Outcomes Classification began in 1991 at the University of Iowa when a group of 43 nurses representing nursing education and service agencies started to identify and classify nursing sensitive patient outcomes. 1 the data used in the initial development of outcomes and their indicators were nursing textbooks, care plan guides, nursing clinical information systems, standards of practice, and research instruments.2 Each has a label name, a definition, measurement scales, a list of indicators and references.
An outcome is a measurable state of an individual, family, community that is responsive to nursing interventions. 3 It is measured with a Likert scale with one being the least desirable state and five being the best. It can be used to set targets for patients either as maintain at or increase to a given level. 4 The outcomes have been linked to NANDA International diagnoses, Omaha system problems, and the OASIS system. NOC is currently being mapped to SNOMED. 3 The fifth edition of Nursing Outcomes Classifications (NOC) lists 490 outcomes in alphabetical order. They are organized into seven domains: functional health, physiological health, psychological health, health knowledge behavior, perceived health, family health, and community health which are subdivided into 32 classes.
NOC is maintained by the Center for Nursing Classification and Clinical Effectiveness (CNC), an Iowa Board of Regents- approved Center, which was established in 1995.
References
1. Thede LQ, Sewell JP. Informatics and Nursing: Competencies and Applications. 3rd ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins; 2010.
2. CNC - Strengths: Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC). http://www.nursing.uiowa.edu/cncce/nursing-outcomes-classification-strengths . Accessed October 8, 2014.
3. Center for Nursing Classification & Clinical Effectiveness. CNC - Overview: Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC). 2013; http://www.nursing.uiowa.edu/cncce/nursing-interventions-classification-overview . Accessed October 29, 2013.
4. Moorhead S. Measuring Outcomes of Nursing Care Using the NOC. www.dbfk.de/VeranstaltungenBV/Praesentationen-Konstanz-2013/Moorhead1-Country-German-Conference.pdf . Accessed October 8, 2014.
5. Center for Nursing Classification and Clinical Effectiveness. http://www.nursing.uiowa.edu/center-for-nursing-classification-and-clinical-effectiveness . Accessed October 6, 2014.
Additional Resources for NOC
Johnson, M. (1998). Overview of the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC). Online Journal of nursing informatics, 2(2).
Scherb, C. A., Head, B. J., Hertzog, M., Swanson, E., Reed, D., Maas, M. L., . . . Weinberg, B. (2013). Evaluation of outcome change scores for patients with pneumonia or heart failure. [Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't]. West J Nurs Res, 35(1), 117-140. doi: 10.1177/0193945911401429
del Rey-Moya, L. M., Castilla-Alvarez, C., Pichiule-Castaneda, M., Rico-Blazquez, M., Escortell-Mayor, E., & Gomez-Quevedo, R. (2013). Effect of a group intervention in the primary healthcare setting on continuing adherence to physical exercise routines in obese women. J Clin Nurs, 22(15-16), 2114-2121. doi: 10.1111/jocn.12091
Johnson, M., & Mass, M. (Eds.). (1992). Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC). St. Louis: Mosby Year Book.
Created October 8, 2014
