Objective To explore the effects of health care curriculum reform for the elderly on health care ability of nursing students. Methods The teaching reform was conducted in the elective course of health care for the aged of students in Grade 2016,while students in Grade 2015 were taught by the traditional method. Results After the reform,the teaching quality was improved compared with that of the previous grade（P<0.05）. In the final examination results of health care course for the aged,the score of Grade 16 was higher than that of Grade 2015（t=2.16,P=0.03）. Conclusion The reform of health care course for the aged has been accepted by the students. Compared with the traditional teaching method,this teaching method pays more attention to the cultivation of students’ analysis ability,application ability and their professional skills. Meanwhile,it can improve the students’ practical skills.