A nurse is caring for a patient with a nursing diagnosis of Constipation related to slowed gastrointestinal motility secondary to pain medications. Which outcome is most appropriate for the nurse to include in the plan of care?

A) Patient will have one soft, formed bowel movement by end of shift.
B) Patient will walk unassisted to bathroom by the end of shift.
C) Patient will be offered laxatives or stool softeners this shift.
D) Patient will not take any pain medications this shift.

The identified problem, or nursing diagnosis, is constipation. Therefore, the outcome should be that the constipation is relieved. To measure constipation relief, the nurse will be observing for the patient to have a bowel movement. During planning, you select goals and expected outcomes for each nursing diagnosis or problem to provide clear direction for the type of interventions needed to care for your patient and to then evaluate the effectiveness of these interventions. Not taking pain medications may or may not relieve the constipation. Although not taking pain medicines might be an intervention, the nurse doesn't want the patient to be in pain to relieve constipation. Other measures, such as administering laxatives or stool softeners, might be appropriate interventions but they are not outcomes. The patient walking unassisted to the bathroom addresses mobility, not constipation. The patient may need to walk to the bathroom to have a bowel movement, but the appropriate outcome for constipation is that the constipation is relieved as evidenced by a bowel movement-something that the nurse can observe.