To investigate the clinical practice of undergraduate nursing students in TCM and western medicine hospitals, and explore the gap between them, so as to provide targeted guidance for clinical teaching.

By convenience sampling method, 120 undergraduate nursing students from 12 hospitals in Jiangsu province were investigated and analyzed by self-designed questionnaire.

There was no significant difference in the score of demand for nursing knowledge and skills in 7 dimensions in undergraduate nursing students of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and western medicine hospitals in clinical practice (P>0.05). The demand entry ranking ahead in western medicine hospitals was interpersonal communication knowledge and communication skills (3.60±0.53), the score of writing specification of medical nursing documents was (3.60±0.53). While the demand entry ranking ahead in TCM hospitals was the use of TCM theory in diagnosis and treatment based on symdrome differentiation (3.96±0.71) and the prevention of nursing errors (3.64±0.49). The demands for clinical practice knowledge and skills of students in TCM hospitals and western hospitals in the survey of 7 dimensions of demand satisfaction showed no significant difference (P>0.05). The demands with high satisfaction in western medicine hospitals included the common western basic nursing skills and nursing professional thought and occupation moral education; in TCM hospitals, demands with high satisfaction included TCM rehabilitation, nursing professional thought and occupation moral education.

There are differences in the clinical practice of undergraduate nursing students in TCM and western medicine hospitals. Both TCM and western hospitals should pay more attention to the needs of nursing students in various aspects. Hospitals should understand the differences between nursing students and their needs, strengthen the management during the internship period and take effective measures to meet the needs of nursing students in clinical practice.

Clinical practice; TCM hospital; Western medicine hospital; Undergraduate nursing students; Comparative analysis