Respiratory Nursing Diagnoses & Care Plans

Respiratory Nursing Diagnoses & Care Plans

Respiratory disorders are a major focus in NCLEX prep and clinical practice, and nurses must rapidly identify breathing problems and plan safe, effective care.
This page brings together our respiratory nursing diagnoses and care plans so you can quickly find assessment cues, nursing interventions, and rationales for the most common pulmonary conditions.

How to use this respiratory care‑plan guide

• Start with the list of individual respiratory diagnoses and care plans below (COPD, asthma, pneumonia, ARDS, mechanical ventilation, pleural effusion, etc.).

• Open each care plan to review: definition, causes, signs and symptoms, nursing assessment findings, priority interventions with rationales, and expected outcomes.

• Use the examples as a study guide for NCLEX and as a reference when developing care plans in clinical settings.

Respiratory nursing diagnoses included:

• Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
• Aspiration
• Asthma
• Atelectasis
• Bronchiolitis
• Bronchitis
• Chest Tubes
• COPD
• Cor Pulmonale
• Croup
• Cystic Fibrosis
• Dyspnea
• Emphysema
• Epiglottitis
• Histoplamosis
• Impaired Gas Exchange
• Ineffective Airway Clearance
• Ineffective Breathing Pattern
• Ineffective Tissue Perfusion
• Influenza
• Mechanical Ventilation
• Pertussis
• Pleural Effusion
• Pleurisy
• Pneumonia
• Pneumothorax
• Pulmonary Edema
• Pulmonary Embolism
• Pulmonary Fibrosis
• Pulmonary Hypertension
• Reactive Airway Disease
• Respiratory Acidosis
• Respiratory Alkalosis
• Risk for Aspiration
• RSV
• Shortness of Breath
• Sleep Apnea
• Tracheostomy
• Tuberculosis