International Journal of Nursing Research

Objective This study aims to understand and determine the demand of hospitalized elderly patients for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) nursing services and its influencing factors, so as to improve nursing services in a targeted manner and provide empirical research support for the development of TCM nursing services under the integration of medical and elderly care model. Method Using convenient sampling, elderly inpatients from a tertiary hospital were selected as the research subjects. Their current needs for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) nursing services were investigated through a questionnaire survey, and correlation analysis was conducted. Results 85.6% of the patients need TCM nursing services. Among them, hospitalized elderly patients have a relatively high demand for dietary guidance, massage, and health preservation. There is a significant difference in ethnicity. The demand of Mongolian patients for TCM external application is significantly higher than that of Han patients (p = 0.015). Influencing factors such as educational level, ethnic differences, and the level of TCM cognition are significant. Conclusion Elderly patients pay more attention to easy - to - operate TCM techniques, such as dietary guidance and massage, which highly coincide with the concept of preventing and treating diseases in the integration of medical and elderly care. Chronic disease management, ethnic culture, and economic ability are the core factors of demand differentiation. It is necessary to promote the inclusion of TCM nursing services in medical insurance, develop projects that integrate TCM and Mongolian medicine, and upgrade and optimize bedside TCM nursing services for disabled elderly patients.

Integration of medical care and elderly care; Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) nursing; Inpatient