Survey and Countermeasure Study on the Current Status of Traditional Chinese Medicine Nursing Competency Among Nurses in Hospitals of Chinese Guangyuan Region

Abstract

To investigate the current status of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) nursing competencies among nurses in Guangyuan City-based hospitals and identify training needs, thereby providing evidence for enhancing TCM nursing capabilities in the region, a questionnaire survey was conducted from September 20 to November 24, 2024, targeting clinical nurses engaged in TCM nursing at 19 public medical institutions (including general hospitals, TCM hospitals, and integrated Chinese-Western medicine hospitals) in Guangyuan City. Participants were selected through random sampling. Among the 19 participating institutions, TCM hospitals accounted for 42.11% and general hospitals for 57.87%. A significant proportion of nursing staff had ≤10 years of experience and held junior professional titles, accounting for 53.13% and 52.40%, respectively. Approximately 38.89% of nursing staff could perform only 1-2 TCM nursing techniques. Among the TCM nursing techniques they could perform, acupoint plaster application (67.15%), moxibustion (66.75%), and auricular acupressure (63.59%) were the most common; the highest proficiency in TCM nursing fundamentals was observed in commonly used TCM nursing techniques (47.27%), the four diagnostic methods (41.61%), and basic TCM nursing knowledge (39.10%); the highest proficiency in commonly used TCM nursing techniques was in moxibustion (62.48%), acupoint plaster application (61.82%), and auricular acupressure (61.09%). The highest proficiency in TCM nursing clinical practice was observed in TCM nursing rounds (44.11%), TCM nursing protocol validation for priority diseases (33.71%), and syndrome differentiation-based nursing for specialized diseases (33.64%). The overall training willingness among the included nursing staff was relatively high at 88.35%. In general, healthcare institutions demonstrated a high level of emphasis on TCM nursing training at 82.29%. However, 43.05% of respondents still expressed a desire for institutions to increase the quantity and content of TCM nursing training. They particularly hoped for more training opportunities in TCM nursing theory, TCM nursing techniques, and TCM health preservation knowledge, while also seeking more innovative training methods. In Conclusion, Traditional Chinese Medicine nursing competencies among healthcare providers in Guangyuan remained relatively low. However, nursing staff expressed a desire for more training in theories and skills related to TCM clinical practice. They also expect hospital administrators to provide more learning opportunities, innovate training methods, and continuously enhance the TCM nursing competencies of local healthcare providers.