title: Advancing nursing's accountability for outcomes.
abstract: Nursing outcomes accountability is in its infancy. Progress awaits the use of standardized nursing diagnoses, interventions, and nursing-sensitive patient outcomes in nursing clinical decision making and documentation. Changes in nursing delivery systems also are required so that nurses are empowered as individuals and as a professional collective to demonstrate their accountability for the outcomes of patients. Finally, the attitudes and behaviors of nurse clinicians, administrators, and educators, individually and collectively, are important in advancing nursing's accountability as a single discipline and as a member of the interdisciplinary team. In subsequent columns, each of these issues and needed actions will be explored more fully.
authors.affiliation: University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa City, USA.
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Maas
mesh_terms: D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007587:Job Description; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology; D009729:Nursing / Q000592:standards*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*