RESUMEN
PURPOSE: To construct and validate a data collection instrument (DCI), and a corresponding instructional guide, for assessment of the nursing diagnosis, risk for infection, in patients following cardiac surgery. METHODS: Construction of conceptual and operational definitions for risk factors based on literature, content validation by experts, and clinical validation by clinical nurses. FINDINGS: There were significant internal consistency and reproducibility in the content validation. In the clinical validation, agreement among nurses was higher than 70% for all risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: The DCI was constructed and validated. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: This DCI could be used for assessment of adult patients after cardiac surgeries worldwide because of its detailed cues for risk factors, which facilitate clinical reasoning and diagnostic judgment.