Outcome Evaluation: An Essential Component for CNS Practice

Tumultuous changes in healthcare costs, delivery, and service are requiring revolutionary new approaches by healthcare professionals to meet current and future needs. Multidisciplinary teams are creating many innovative care delivery models. It is essential that healthcare professionals evaluate the cost effectiveness and impact of their care and service on both patient and system outcomes. Clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) are an integral component in these models and are uniquely qualified both to implement and to evaluate care delivery and systems changes. The purpose of this article is to describe the role of the CNS in outcomes evaluation. Specifically, various types of outcomes are delineated, with a differentiation between nurse-sensitive and medical and collaborative care outcomes. Examples of valid and reliable measurement tools that are easy to use and have wide comparability are described, and implications for CNS practice are posed.