ABSTRACT
Objective:To clarify the long-term trend of nursing human resource allocation in China, and provide basis for relevant departments to optimize nursing human resource allocation.Methods:Data were extracted from China′s health statistical yearbook from 1990 to 2019. Six indicators of the number of registered nurses, the number of registered nurses per 1 000 population, the ratio of registered nurses to health technicians, doctor-nurse ratio, hospital bed-nurse ratio and nurse-patient ratio were used to make a descriptive statistical analysis on the changing trend of nursing human resources in China.Results:From 1990 to 2019, the number of registered nurses increased from 0.970 million to 4.445 million in China, with an average annual growth rate of 5.37%, the average annual growth rate was 2.23% from 1990 to 2005, 9.96% from 2006 to 2013, and 8.21% from 2014 to 2019. The number of registered nurses per 1 000 population increased from 0.85 to 3.18, with a 4.65% annual growth rate, the doctor-nurse ratio increased from 1∶0.55 to 1∶1.15, with a 2.58% annual growth rate, the hospital bed-nurse ratio increased from 1∶0.33 to 1∶0.50, and the average annual growth rate was 1.44%. The proportion of registered nurses to health technicians increased from 24.87% in 1990 to 43.84% in 2019, however, the number of registered nurses in hospitals accounted for about 73.00% of registered nurses in health institutions.Conclusions:From 1990 to 2019, the overall allocation efficiency of nursing human resources in China has been significantly optimized, and indicators such as doctor-nurse ratio and hospital bed-nurse ratio have improved, but the growth rate is slowing down. The relevant departments need to take necessary measures to further increase the absolute and relative number of nurses to cope with the increasing service demand.