Abstract: Objective: To investigate the coupling coordination between nursing human resources and healthcare service capacity in the Sichuan-Chongqing region and to optimize the regional healthcare service system. Methods: Using data of 22 cities in the Sichuan-Chongqing region from 2012 to 2022, this study applied the entropy weight method to evaluate nursing human resources and healthcare service capacity, and adopted the coupling coordination degree model to analyze the interactive coordination between the two systems. Results: The comprehensive evaluation score of nursing human resources increased from 0.076 in 2012 to 0.143 in 2022. Meanwhile, the comprehensive evaluation score of health care service capabilities rose from 0.290 in 2012 to 0.336 in 2022. The coupling coordination degree also increased, from 0.281 in 2012 to 0.331 in 2022. Among the investigated cities, 11 achieved positive improvements, while 11 remained stable. Conclusion: The comprehensive evaluation of nursing human resources in the Sichuan-Chongqing region has improved significantly, while the growth of health care service capabilities has lagged behind. The degree of coupling and coordination has shown a steady upward trend; the spatial coordination between different regions has also progressed significantly, exhibiting clear signs of path dependence. It is recommended to expand the size of the nursing workforce and strengthen the definition of their core responsibilities; in addition, efforts should be made to enhance collaborative training programs among various stakeholders, and regional-specific policies should be implemented accordingly.

Key words: Sichuan-Chongqing region; nursing human resources; health care service capacity; degree of coupling coordination