Imagine a patient telling you that his heartbeat is fast, and when you check the vitals, everything is normal. What the patient tells you is half of the story, and the rest is what you measure and verify. This is called subjective and objective data in nursing. Nurses should know how to use both subjective and objective data for better patient outcomes. In this blog, we will learn the difference between subjective vs objective data, examples, and tips.
What is subjective data in nursing?
Subjective data is based on the patient’s feelings and experiences, and cannot be measured or observed by the nurse. Some of the examples of subjective nursing data are as follows:
- My heart is beating fast.
- I feel nauseous.
- I have a headache.
- I feel tired all the time.
Subjective data of the patient should be documented in the patient’s own words to avoid misinterpretation.
What is objective data in nursing?
Objective data is observable, measurable data that is collected through assessments, physical exams, or tests. Some of the examples of objective data are as follows:
- Temperature of patient:102°F
- Heart rate of patient: 85 bpm
- Lab results show iron: 6
Nurses use various tools to measure the patient’s objective data, such as a thermometer.
What are the differences between objective and subjective data?
Some of the key differences between subjective and objective data are as follows:
- Subjective data is measurable, whereas objective data is not.
- The source of subjective data is the patient, whereas the source of objective data is nurses’ assessments.
- In subjective data, the documentation is done in quotation marks, such as “I have a headache.” In objective data, the documentation is done in measurable values such as BP 160/190mmHg.
Why is it important to collect both subjective data and objective medical information in nursing?
Both subjective and objective data play an important role in patients’ treatment. The subjective data tell the nurse how the patient feels, and the objective data is measurable evidence of their condition, and both are important for nursing assessment to help nurses diagnose and create a care plan for patients.
What are the tips to collect better nursing data of the patients?
Some of the tips to collect better data from the patients are as follows:
- Build trust with patients so they can feel comfortable telling you everything.
- Always ask open-ended questions to collect more data from the patients.
- Be specific while documenting.
- Use assessment tools.
- Always cross-check subjective data with objective findings.
What are the challenges that nurses might face while collecting subjective data from the patients?
- Communication barriers, such as a patient speaking a different language or a patient with hearing and speech impairment, make verbal communication difficult.
- Sometimes patients are from different cultural backgrounds and are unable or not comfortable sharing certain topics.
- Patients may underreport or exaggerate symptoms due to fear or anxiety.
- Perception differences in patients are also one of the reasons that make it challenging for nurses to collect subjective data. For one patient, if pain is severe, the other might call it moderate.
- Stress, depression, and anxiety can also effective the subjective data of the patient.
- A patient with a complex condition may have difficulty describing their symptoms, and sometimes symptoms may change with time.
What are the challenges that nurses might face while collecting objective data?
Some nurses might face difficulty while collecting objective data of the patient, such as:
- Equipment-related issues
- Uncooperative patients
- Timing and consistency issues.
- Lack of experience of nurses with some assessment tools.
- Documentation of interpretation errors.
Is pain subjective or objective data?
- Pain is subjective data as it cannot be measured, and it is the patient’s personal experience.
- What are some examples of subjective and objective data in nursing?
- Subjective data is not measurable and is the patient’s personal experience, such as pain, nausea, headache, etc.
- Objective data is measurable data that is collected by a nurse through assessment tools, tests, and physical exams, such as hemoglobin 10.5 g/dL, temperature 103.2 °F, wound 2 cm long, etc.
Conclusion
Both subjective and objective are important for nursing assessment and to create a caring plan for the patient. Subjective data is not measurable and is the personal experience of the patient where whereas the objective data is measurable and collected by a nurse through tests, physical exams, etc. A nurse should master balancing these two nursing data to create patient-centered care. Good news for travel nurses! If you are looking for a high-paying job, freedom, and flexibility, then join SkillGigs now and become part of our travel nursing world, where you can bid on the jobs that you want.
