What is a sign?

What is a sign?

• A. A diagnosis
• B. An objective finding perceived by the examiner
• C. A subjective feeling stated by the patient
• D. A treatment plan

Answer: (B)

In nursing assessment, a sign is an objective finding that the examiner can observe or measure. This means it’s data you can detect with your senses or with instruments—things like fever, swelling, a rash, or an elevated blood pressure. This is different from a symptom, which is a subjective experience reported by the patient, such as pain or dizziness. A diagnosis is a clinical conclusion about the patient’s condition, not something you observe directly, and a treatment plan is a plan of care, not a data finding. So the correct idea here is an objective finding perceived by the examiner, which is what a sign represents. For example, noticing a fever or a swollen ankle fits as signs, while the patient saying they hurt fits as a symptom.

In nursing assessment, a sign is an objective finding that the examiner can observe or measure. This means it’s data you can detect with your senses or with instruments—things like fever, swelling, a rash, or an elevated blood pressure. This is different from a symptom, which is a subjective experience reported by the patient, such as pain or dizziness. A diagnosis is a clinical conclusion about the patient’s condition, not something you observe directly, and a treatment plan is a plan of care, not a data finding. So the correct idea here is an objective finding perceived by the examiner, which is what a sign represents. For example, noticing a fever or a swollen ankle fits as signs, while the patient saying they hurt fits as a symptom.