Representation of patients' health asset concepts in the International Classification of Nursing Practice (ICNP).

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the representation of health asset concepts in the International Classification of Nursing Practice (ICNP). In a previous study we conducted a concept analysis of health assets, building a conceptual model. The terms included in our conceptual model were cross-mapped to the ICNP terminology system, Version 1.0/1.1. Most of the health asset terms in the conceptual model were represented in ICNP. However, for maximum support of both clinical nursing care and patient self-care, a complete set of health asset terms is needed in the ICNP. We advocate for more research to uncover patients' and clinicians' detailed use of health asset terms. This should result in a richer and more specific health assets vocabulary that could be integrated into ICNP or other nursing terminologies as a means to improve nursing care and to strengthen patients' self-management of their illnesses. However, the findings from this first evaluation of health asset terms in the ICNP are promising, at least on a global level.