Final answer:
The nurse prioritizes nursing diagnoses during the Planning step of the nursing process. It comes after the initial assessment and diagnosis, with the goal of setting patient care priorities.
Step-by-step explanation:
The prioritization of nursing diagnoses occurs during the Planning step of the nursing process. The nursing process is a systematic method used by nurses for the management and delivery of patient care, which includes five steps: Assessment, Diagnosis, Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation.
Planning is the third step after assessment and diagnosis. At this stage, the nurse organizes the diagnosed problems and prioritizes them according to their severity, urgency, and the patient’s needs. This involves setting goals and expected outcomes for the patient's recovery and developing a plan of action to address the identified nursing diagnoses.