Nurse's Pocket Guide: Problems, Diagnoses, Prioritized Solutions, and Rationales, 17th Edition Doody's Expert Review Review Questionnaire ISBN: 9781719650366 ISBN-10: 1719650365 Copyright: 2026 Edition: 17th Author: Moorhouse, Mary Frances, Baughn, Christina, Moore-Nadler, Margaret, Doody's Expert Review    Score: 93 Doody's Star Rating™ and Doody's Expert Review provide by Doody Enterprises, Inc. Reviewer: Susan DeNisco,  DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, FAANP  (Sacred Heart University) Description This 17th edition book uses current evidence to support and refine the nursing process with the goal of developing accurate nursing care plans and enhancing positive patient outcomes. This resource helps support nursing students' academic and NCLEX preparation in addition to sharpening clinical decision making. Purpose The book provides a comprehensive overview of the nursing process including subjective and objective data collection, data analysis, selection of nursing diagnoses, and care plan development. It features 174 of the most used nursing diagnoses in a variety of clinical settings. Each diagnosis is mapped to the NCSBN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model. Priority actions and interventions are presented based on recognizing cues in assessment data and then generating solutions or interventions based on client problems and stated needs. Evaluation of patient care outcomes and accurate documentation is encouraged to promote critical thinking. Audience This guide is a strong supplemental resource for undergraduate nursing students to use in the clinical setting. Nursing faculty may find this a useful resource to use in pre- and post-clinical conferences to promote critical thinking. Features This 1,200-page pocket guide is divided into four chapters. The first succinctly reviews the nursing process, clinical judgement, and planning patient care. The second provides in-depth information on specific nursing diagnoses. These diagnoses are alphabetized and presented with clear sections that include definitions, related and risk factors, defining subjective and objective characteristics, and clinical connections. Prioritized interventions are listed logically with associated rationales critical to clinical decision making and when planning interventions in clinical assignments. The third chapter focuses on specific health conditions and client concerns. The use of icons to flag acute care, collaboration needs, evidence-based practice, lifespan considerations including pediatric and geriatric), and other care contexts make it a quick reference and reinforces situational thinking. The final chapter provides a valuable screening tool for students to organize themselves in collecting subjective and objective assessment data by body system, roles and relationships, safety needs, self-care, values, beliefs, and beyond. A valuable feature is the example case study of a prototype client situation and comprehensive care plan that follows. A detachable pocket-minder is included as a bookmark with nursing diagnoses organized by diagnostic divisions and correlating page numbers which is meant to enhance easy usability in fast-paced clinical settings. Assessment This pocket guide was first published in 1985, which attests to its continued importance in undergraduate nursing education. It strikes a strong balance between depth and accessibility for nursing students. Its updated, evidence-based content makes care planning more intuitive, while the emphasis on documentation and clinical judgment supports academic success and safe patient outcomes. This is an important go-to reference to be used in the clinical setting to support clinical reasoning at every step of the nursing process. Review Questionnaire Range Question Score 1-10 Are the author's objectives met? 10 1-10 Rate the worthiness of those objectives. 10 1-5 Is this written at an appropriate level? 5 1-5 Is there significant duplication? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 5 1-5 Are there significant omissions? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 5 1-5 Rate the authority of the authors. 5 1-5 Are there sufficient illustrations? 3 1-5 Rate the pedagogic value of the illustrations. 3 1-5 Rate the print quality of the illustrations. 3 1-5 Are there sufficient references? 5 1-5 Rate the currency of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the pertinence of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the helpfulness of the index. 5 1-5 If important in this specialty, rate the physical appearance of the book 4 1-10 Is this a worthwhile contribution to the field? 10 1-10 If this is a 2nd or later edition, is this new edition needed? 10 ©2026 Doody Enterprises, Inc.