JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

The German nursing care system faces significant challenges due to demographic changes, a workforce shortage, and rising demand for care services. Digital assistive technologies (DAT) offer potential to address these challenges, but systematic and standardized nursing data are essential to evaluate both innovations and broader care processes. The Nursing Minimum Data Set (NMDS) provides a foundational framework for capturing structured information on nursing care, yet international consensus on its core content, development, and practical use remains limited.

Objective:

This scoping review aims to map current international literature regarding: (1) the core content elements of NMDS, (2) methodological approaches used in NMDS development, and (3) implementation and usage of NMDS in different nursing settings.

Methods:

Following the JBI methodology and Arksey and O’Malley framework, a systematic search was conducted on July 2, 2025, in MEDLINE (PubMed) and CINAHL (EBSCO) using the term "nursing minimum data set". Inclusion was restricted to studies in English or German focusing on the content, development, or implementation of NMDS. The research team independently and double-blindly reviewed studies for eligibility based on predefined criteria, with discrepancies resolved by consensus. Eligible studies were narratively summarized, with extraction structured into categories based on the review’s research questions.

Results:

From 1,908 initially identified articles, 26 studies met the inclusion criteria. Considerable heterogeneity was found in the structure and scope of NMDS, with data sets comprising 16 to 145 items. Despite variation, four central domains consistently emerged: patient demographics, medical care information, nursing care elements, and institutional/organizational data. NMDS development typically followed a participatory, multi-stage approach involving literature analysis, stakeholder consensus-building, and validation through pre-testing and real-world application. Implementation and use of NMDS serve multiple functions, including documenting nursing care processes, supporting workload measurement and resource planning, quality assurance, benchmarking, and demonstrating nursing's contribution to patient outcomes. However, successful implementation depends on technical, legal, organizational, and educational strategies. Core challenges include lack of standardized terminology, inconsistent legal frameworks, and varying levels of staff training and acceptance.

Conclusions:

NMDS provide a robust basis for standardized nursing documentation, quality assurance, and health system planning, but international variability and ongoing challenges in harmonization, integration, and acceptability persist. Advancing NMDS requires collaborative efforts for interoperability, investment in digital infrastructure, and targeted education. Further research should focus on comparative effectiveness, cross-context validation, and strategies to reduce documentation burden while maximizing data utility.