Disease Process/Pathophysiology/Risk Factors

Recognizing Cues

WGU Nursing Concept Map – DIRECTIONS

Analyzing Cues/Concerns

Supporting

Concerning

Prioritizing Hypotheses

Take ActionsGenerated Solutions

Evaluations Outcomes

Identify relevant and important information from different sources (medical records, signs and symptoms, and vital signs).

What does the patient look like? What are the patient’s complaints? Does the patient have anything in their medical history that would indicate this could be a problem? What are the patient’s vital signs?

What are the patient’s cues that support the diagnosis? List three

Organize and connect the recognized cues to the client’s clinical presentation.

Which of these supporting cues is most concerning? List two

What do you want to happen if the patient drinks fluids? What do you want to happen if you give the patient antibiotics?

You must have four solutions. Identify expected solutions and use the hypotheses to define a set of interventions for the expected solutions.

Solutions for this section

This section is for you to evaluate your desired solution within the clinical shift. You should have four evaluations: one for each desired solution.

Example: Despite giving the patient acetaminophen for a fever, the patient continued to have a low-grade fever (100.1 degrees) for the entire clinical shift.

What was the admitting diagnosis?

Go to your book, look up the disease process, and write down the pathophysiology of the disease process.

What are the risk factors for this disease process? What causes this disease process?

Disease process

Pathophysiology

Risk Factors

Evaluate and prioritize hypotheses. Utilize words such as, urgency, likelihood, risk, difficulty, time, and constraints.

You want to write what happen if…. Forecasting or predicting response.

List three hypotheses.

List one action for each solution. List the most important action of each solution.

Based on the solutions identified, what interventions (solutions) would you implement to address what is happening to the patient?

Struggling with where to start this assignment? Follow this guide to tackle your assignment easily!

Step-by-Step Guide to Completing the WGU Nursing Concept Map

Step 1: Identify the Admitting Diagnosis

Begin by clearly stating the admitting diagnosis documented in the patient’s medical record.

Locate the diagnosis in your nursing textbook
Identify the disease process
Write a concise explanation of the pathophysiology
List the risk factors and common causes

➡️ Tutor tip: This information provides the clinical foundation for all subsequent sections.

Step 2: Disease Process / Pathophysiology / Risk Factors

Complete this section using four concise points:

Overview of the disease process
How the disease affects normal body function
Underlying pathophysiological mechanisms
Risk factors (age, lifestyle, comorbidities, environment, etc.)

Use textbook-supported language and avoid copying directly.

Step 3: Recognizing Cues (Assessment)

Identify relevant and important patient information from multiple sources:

Medical records
Patient complaints (subjective data)
Physical appearance
Vital signs
Lab results
Past medical history

Address:

What does the patient look like?
What symptoms are reported?
Are there historical factors increasing risk?
Which findings are abnormal or urgent?

➡️ Tutor tip: Focus on cues that directly relate to the admitting diagnosis.

Step 4: Analyzing Cues / Concerns

Organize and connect the recognized cues to the patient’s clinical presentation.

In this section:

Identify three cues that support the diagnosis
Explain why these cues are occurring
Separate cues into:
- Supporting
- Concerning

Then identify two supporting cues that are the most concerning and justify why.

➡️ Tutor tip: This demonstrates your ability to interpret—not just list—data.

Step 5: Prioritizing Hypotheses

List three hypotheses explaining what may be happening to the patient.

When prioritizing, consider:

Urgency
Likelihood
Risk to patient safety
Time constraints
Difficulty of intervention

Use forecasting language such as:

“If the condition worsens…”
“If untreated…”

➡️ Tutor tip: The most life-threatening hypothesis is always the priority.

Step 6: Generate Solutions (Planning)

You must identify four solutions (expected outcomes).

For each solution:

Describe what you want to happen (e.g., response to fluids or antibiotics)
Ensure outcomes are SMART
Use hypotheses to guide intervention selection

➡️ Tutor tip: Solutions describe patient outcomes, not nursing tasks.

Step 7: Take Actions (Implementation)

List one key action for each solution.

Clearly explain:

What intervention will be performed
Why it addresses the problem
Which action is the most important

Focus on nursing-scope interventions that directly address patient needs.

Step 8: Evaluation of Outcomes

Provide four evaluations, one for each solution.

In each evaluation:

Describe patient response within the clinical shift
Identify improvement, decline, or no change
Determine intervention effectiveness

Example:

Despite administering acetaminophen, the patient continued to have a low-grade fever (100.1°F) throughout the clinical shift.

➡️ Tutor tip: Evaluations must be measurable and patient-focused.

Step 9: Final Review

Before submission:

Confirm all sections are completed
Ensure cues support hypotheses
Match interventions to solutions
Maintain professional nursing language

Recommended Nursing Resources

Use these credible sources to support your work:

Lewis’s Medical-Surgical Nursing (Elsevier)
https://www.elsevier.com
ATI Nursing Fundamentals
https://www.atitesting.com
NANDA International Nursing Diagnoses
https://www.nanda.org
MedlinePlus – Disease Processes & Risk Factors
https://medlineplus.gov
CDC – Clinical Conditions & Risk Factors
https://www.cdc.gov

A Complete Guide to the WGU Nursing Concept Map and Clinical Reasoning