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NANDA International

NANDA International (NANDA-I) is a professional organization founded in 1982, initially as the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association, and later reorganized in 2002 to broaden its geographic reach. NANDA-I's primary objective is the development of standardized terminology for evidence-based nursing diagnoses, which facilitates improved communication among nursing professionals. The organization is recognized for its contribution to nursing practice through its classification system, known as Taxonomy II, which provides a common language for nurses worldwide. NANDA-I collaborates with other nursing classifications, such as the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC) and Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC), to enhance the consistency and quality of nursing care.

NANDA-I plays a vital role in funding research, advocating for evidence-based practices, and supporting clinical decision-making within the nursing community. Its history includes significant milestones, such as the first national conference on nursing diagnoses in 1973 and collaboration with the World Health Organization in 1986. By standardizing nursing terminology and practices, NANDA-I aims to improve data collection on nursing diagnoses and care outcomes, thereby promoting higher standards of care in diverse healthcare settings. The organization also engages international members, reflecting a commitment to a globally unified approach to nursing diagnostics.

Full Article

The North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA) International was founded in 1982 and reorganized in 2002 as NANDA International (NANDA-I), with a larger geographic scope. The group includes members from over thirty nations in North America, Africa, Oceania, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. NANDA-I’s primary purpose is to develop standardized terminology for evidence-based nursing diagnoses. It also funds research through the NANDA-I Foundation and shares information about evidence-based nursing practices and clinical decision-making.

Together with the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC) and the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC), NANDA-I’s nursing classification, Taxonomy II (often just called “NANDA” by nurses), provides a standardized language of nursing. The collaboration of languages between these organizations is referred to collectively as the NNN Taxonomy.

Overview

The First National Conference on the Classification of Nursing Diagnoses was held in 1973, after a task force was called by Mary Ann Lavin and Kristine Gebbie (who later went on to become the first White House Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome [AIDS] Czar, or National AIDS policy coordinator), faculty members at Saint Louis University. Saint Louis University established the Clearinghouse for Nursing Diagnoses, which held nursing diagnosis materials, coordinated plans for further national conferences, and distributed bibliographies on diagnostic categories. In 1977, an affiliated nurse theorist group organized, and at the national conference in 1978, presented its first framework for nursing diagnoses, Patterns of Unitary Man (Humans).

In 1982, the National Task Forces of the United States and Canada officially merged to form the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association, electing Dr. Marjory Gordon as its first president. That same year, the American Nurses Association (ANA) established a steering committee on the classification of nursing practice phenomena, of which the president of NANDA would be a committee member. In 1986, ANA presented NANDA’s nursing language and classification system to the World Health Organization and recommended that it be disseminated internationally.

NANDA’s first Taxonomy was published in 1987, based on the earlier Patterns of Unitary Man and subsequent theoretical work, and incorporating collaborations with the ANA. The first international collaborations began shortly thereafter, and NANDA’s official journal, Nursing Diagnosis, began publication in 1990. It later became The International Journal of Nursing Knowledge (in 2026, NANDA-I announced that the journal would transition to SAGE Publishing). NANDA, NIC, and NOC held their first joint meeting to coordinate standardized nursing language in 1997.

The Taxonomy underwent a substantial revision lasting several years and was overhauled and released as Taxonomy II in 2002. In 2008, NANDA-I began allowing nursing diagnosis submissions online, and in 2010, it became an affiliate member of the International Council of Nurses.

The standardized language of NIC, NOC, and NANDA-I’s Taxonomy II is important to nursing because it makes for better and simpler communication among nurses. Moreover, standardization across the industry and consistency of use over time enable better and more efficient data collection on diagnoses, nursing care, care outcomes, and standards of care by ensuring the accuracy of one-to-one comparisons.

NANDA regularly updates its Nursing Diagnoses: Definitions and Classifications text to include the latest scientific findings and informative discussions. Many hospitals integrate NANDA-I into electronic health records to facilitate standardized nursing documentation, which improves patient care. NANDA launched the 2024–26 fully updated and revised edition (the thirteenth edition) of its nursing diagnoses text in April 2024. NANDA-I also announced in 2025 that it would begin operating publicly under the name International Nursing Knowledge Association (INKA) from 2026, alongside the release of its redesigned website. In March 2026, Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine (SNOMED) International, a not-for-profit organization with a comprehensive clinical terminology standard called SNOMED CT, and NANDA-I announced a five-year collaboration to advance interoperable nursing terminology for use in digital health systems.


Bibliography

American Nurses Association. Nursing Informatics: Scope and Standards of Practice. 3rd ed., American Nurses Association, 2022.

D’Antonio, Patricia. American Nursing. Johns Hopkins UP, 2010.

Donahue, M. Patricia. Nursing, the Finest Art. Mosby, 2010.

Forrester, David Anthony, editor. Nursing’s Greatest Leaders. Springer, 2016.

Gulanick, Meg, and Judith Myers. Nursing Care Plans: Diagnoses, Interventions, and Outcomes. Mosby, 2013.

“ICN’s Definition of Nursing.” NANDA International, Inc., www.nanda.org/2026/01/icns-definition-of-nursing/. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

Johnson, Marion, et al. NANDA, NOC, and NIC Linkages. Mosby, 2005.

Judd, Deborah, and Kathleen Sitzman. A History of American Nursing. Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2013.

Makic, Mary Beth Flynn, et al. Ackley and Ladwig’s Nursing Diagnosis Handbook: An Evidence-Based Guide to Planning Care. 13th ed., Elsevier, 2023.

NANDA International. Nursing Diagnoses 2024-2026: Definitions and Classification. 13th ed., Thieme, 2024.

NANDA International, Inc. NANDA International Nursing Diagnoses: Definitions and Classification. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“Nursing Diagnoses: Definitions and Classification.” NANDA International, Inc., nanda.org/publications-resources/publications/nanda-international-nursing-diagnoses. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“Our Story.” NANDA International, Inc., nanda.org/who-we-are/our-story. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“SNOMED International and NANDA-I Announce Five-Year Collaboration to Advance Interoperable Nursing Terminology Worldwide.” SNOMED International, 12 Mar. 2026, www.snomed.org/news/snomed-international-and-nanda-i-announce-five-year-collaboration-to-advance-interoperable-nursing-terminology-worldwide. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“Supporting Excellence in Nursing Scholarship: IJNK’s Transition to SAGE Publishing.” NANDA International, 6 Jan. 2026, nanda.org/2026/01/supporting-excellence-in-nursing-scholarship-ijnks-transition-to-sage-publishing/. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

Full Article

The North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA) International was founded in 1982 and reorganized in 2002 as NANDA International (NANDA-I), with a larger geographic scope. The group includes members from over thirty nations in North America, Africa, Oceania, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. NANDA-I’s primary purpose is to develop standardized terminology for evidence-based nursing diagnoses. It also funds research through the NANDA-I Foundation and shares information about evidence-based nursing practices and clinical decision-making.

Together with the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC) and the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC), NANDA-I’s nursing classification, Taxonomy II (often just called “NANDA” by nurses), provides a standardized language of nursing. The collaboration of languages between these organizations is referred to collectively as the NNN Taxonomy.

Overview

The First National Conference on the Classification of Nursing Diagnoses was held in 1973, after a task force was called by Mary Ann Lavin and Kristine Gebbie (who later went on to become the first White House Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome [AIDS] Czar, or National AIDS policy coordinator), faculty members at Saint Louis University. Saint Louis University established the Clearinghouse for Nursing Diagnoses, which held nursing diagnosis materials, coordinated plans for further national conferences, and distributed bibliographies on diagnostic categories. In 1977, an affiliated nurse theorist group organized, and at the national conference in 1978, presented its first framework for nursing diagnoses, Patterns of Unitary Man (Humans).

In 1982, the National Task Forces of the United States and Canada officially merged to form the North American Nursing Diagnosis Association, electing Dr. Marjory Gordon as its first president. That same year, the American Nurses Association (ANA) established a steering committee on the classification of nursing practice phenomena, of which the president of NANDA would be a committee member. In 1986, ANA presented NANDA’s nursing language and classification system to the World Health Organization and recommended that it be disseminated internationally.

NANDA’s first Taxonomy was published in 1987, based on the earlier Patterns of Unitary Man and subsequent theoretical work, and incorporating collaborations with the ANA. The first international collaborations began shortly thereafter, and NANDA’s official journal, Nursing Diagnosis, began publication in 1990. It later became The International Journal of Nursing Knowledge (in 2026, NANDA-I announced that the journal would transition to SAGE Publishing). NANDA, NIC, and NOC held their first joint meeting to coordinate standardized nursing language in 1997.

The Taxonomy underwent a substantial revision lasting several years and was overhauled and released as Taxonomy II in 2002. In 2008, NANDA-I began allowing nursing diagnosis submissions online, and in 2010, it became an affiliate member of the International Council of Nurses.

The standardized language of NIC, NOC, and NANDA-I’s Taxonomy II is important to nursing because it makes for better and simpler communication among nurses. Moreover, standardization across the industry and consistency of use over time enable better and more efficient data collection on diagnoses, nursing care, care outcomes, and standards of care by ensuring the accuracy of one-to-one comparisons.

NANDA regularly updates its Nursing Diagnoses: Definitions and Classifications text to include the latest scientific findings and informative discussions. Many hospitals integrate NANDA-I into electronic health records to facilitate standardized nursing documentation, which improves patient care. NANDA launched the 2024–26 fully updated and revised edition (the thirteenth edition) of its nursing diagnoses text in April 2024. NANDA-I also announced in 2025 that it would begin operating publicly under the name International Nursing Knowledge Association (INKA) from 2026, alongside the release of its redesigned website. In March 2026, Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine (SNOMED) International, a not-for-profit organization with a comprehensive clinical terminology standard called SNOMED CT, and NANDA-I announced a five-year collaboration to advance interoperable nursing terminology for use in digital health systems.


Bibliography

American Nurses Association. Nursing Informatics: Scope and Standards of Practice. 3rd ed., American Nurses Association, 2022.

D’Antonio, Patricia. American Nursing. Johns Hopkins UP, 2010.

Donahue, M. Patricia. Nursing, the Finest Art. Mosby, 2010.

Forrester, David Anthony, editor. Nursing’s Greatest Leaders. Springer, 2016.

Gulanick, Meg, and Judith Myers. Nursing Care Plans: Diagnoses, Interventions, and Outcomes. Mosby, 2013.

“ICN’s Definition of Nursing.” NANDA International, Inc., www.nanda.org/2026/01/icns-definition-of-nursing/. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

Johnson, Marion, et al. NANDA, NOC, and NIC Linkages. Mosby, 2005.

Judd, Deborah, and Kathleen Sitzman. A History of American Nursing. Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2013.

Makic, Mary Beth Flynn, et al. Ackley and Ladwig’s Nursing Diagnosis Handbook: An Evidence-Based Guide to Planning Care. 13th ed., Elsevier, 2023.

NANDA International. Nursing Diagnoses 2024-2026: Definitions and Classification. 13th ed., Thieme, 2024.

NANDA International, Inc. NANDA International Nursing Diagnoses: Definitions and Classification. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“Nursing Diagnoses: Definitions and Classification.” NANDA International, Inc., nanda.org/publications-resources/publications/nanda-international-nursing-diagnoses. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“Our Story.” NANDA International, Inc., nanda.org/who-we-are/our-story. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“SNOMED International and NANDA-I Announce Five-Year Collaboration to Advance Interoperable Nursing Terminology Worldwide.” SNOMED International, 12 Mar. 2026, www.snomed.org/news/snomed-international-and-nanda-i-announce-five-year-collaboration-to-advance-interoperable-nursing-terminology-worldwide. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

“Supporting Excellence in Nursing Scholarship: IJNK’s Transition to SAGE Publishing.” NANDA International, 6 Jan. 2026, nanda.org/2026/01/supporting-excellence-in-nursing-scholarship-ijnks-transition-to-sage-publishing/. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.

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