What does subjective mean in clinical assessment?

• A. Observed signs by caregiver
• B. Complaints of symptoms
• C. Lab test results
• D. Diagnoses given by doctor

Answer: (B)

Subjective information in clinical assessment comes from the patient’s own report of how they feel and what they’re experiencing. This includes complaints of symptoms like pain, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, or other personal experiences that can’t be measured directly by a clinician. That’s why complaints of symptoms are the best fit for subjective data—the patient is describing their own experience.

Observed signs by a caregiver, lab test results, and diagnoses given by a doctor are objective data. Signs are what can be seen or measured by others, lab results are numerical measurements, and a diagnosis is a clinician’s conclusion—not something the patient reports as a feeling or symptom.