PURPOSE To estimate the time to perform and type of personnel to deliver each of the 486 interventions listed and described in the third edition of NIC. METHODS Small groups of research team members rated selected interventions in their area of expertise on education and time needed for each intervention. Education needed was defined as the minimal educational level necessary to perform the intervention in most cases in most states. Rating categories were (a) nursing assistant (NA/LPN/LVN/technician), (b) RN (basic education whether baccalaureate, associate degree, or diploma), or (c) RN with post‐basic education or certification. Time needed was defined as the average time needed to perform the intervention. Raters selected one of five possible time estimates: (a) <15 minutes, (b) 16–30 minutes, (c) 31–45 minutes, (d) 46–60 minutes, or (e) >1 hour. All ratings were reviewed across groups to ensure overall consistency. FINDINGS Results of this exercise provide beginning estimates of the time and education needed for 486 NIC interventions. Twenty percent required <15 minutes, 30% required 16–30 minutes, 17% required 31–45 minutes, 12% required 46–60 minutes, and 21% required >1 hour. More than 70% of the interventions were judged as needing basic RN education to perform. Raters judged RN post‐basic education to be required to performi 16% of the interventions, and 14% were deemed appropriate for personnel with NA/LPN education to perform. A monograph, Estimated Time and Educational Requirements to Perform 486 Nursing Interventions, available from http://www.nursing@uiowa.ed/cnc, includes lists of interventions appropriate for each time and education category, as well as time and education ratings according to NIC domains and classes. DISCUSSION The estimates of time and education provided by expert ratings provide a good beginning for cost estimates, resource planning, and reimbursement. The results of this study add to the small but growing body of literature that demonstrates that estimates of time to perform interventions by nurses who are familiar with the interventions is an accurate and efficient method to determine time values. A description of how this information can be used in a costing model is in the July/August 2001 issue of Nursing Economics. CONCLUSIONS NIC has identified the interventions that nurses perform. This study of time to perform and type of personnel to deliver each of the NIC interventions can help nurse leaders make better‐informed decisions about cost‐effective nursing care.

The results indicate the types of information that can result from analysis of actual clinical nursing data documented with standardized language (Nursing Interventions Classification) in a nursing information system. The knowledge of nursing interventions used in clinical practice has major implications for staff development and nursing education. The information is also useful in making staffing decisions for different types of patient populations.

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The derivation and description of the embedded structure undergirding nursing interventions are provided in this study. To determine the dimensions of nursing interventions, multidimensional scaling was used to analyze similarity ratings among classes of interventions. Kruskal's stress formula indicated that the embedded structure is composed of three dimensions. To describe the dimensions, each intervention class was rated on a 16-attribute pair semantic differential scale. Subsequent factor analysis and correlations of the factors with the dimensions resulted in the delineation of three dimensions: intensity of care, complexity of care, and focus of care.