Vital Notes for Nurses: Principles of Care is an essential guide for nursing students and newly qualified nurses. It provides a concise introduction to the essential principles of nursing care. It encourages nurses to examine the principles and evidence underlying nursing practice and equips them with a thorough understanding of the complexities of patient care in different environments of care.

Principles of Care explores concepts of health and illness, conceptual frameworks for practice, principles of health care delivery, and professional standards. Key themes include assessment and planning, implementation and evaluation, patient education and health promotion, decision making and risk management, benchmarking, clinical effectiveness and practice development.