| Abstract: | Given the dynamics of the multidisciplinary team and the infancy of nursing diagnoses specific to psychiatric nursing, most nurses prefer using the DSM-III-R to document practice or do not see nursing diagnoses as relevant. The DSM-III-R, first published as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual in 1952, is specific to the medical care of individuals and oriented toward "cure"; nursing diagnoses, initiated in 1973, are applicable to individuals, families, and groups and address human response to actual or potential health problems. The similarities of these two diagnostic systems include being a guide to practice, evolving as works of political compromise with international import, and serving as communication systems. However, without understanding the differences or similarities between these linguistic systems, nurses opting to use only the DSM-III-R do not contribute to understanding phenomena germane to psychiatric nursing, perpetuate the invisibility of nursing to patient care, and invite turf battles with other professions. |
