Objective To extend the scope of mental health service, and to maintain mental health of community-dwelling residents. Methods Based on the innovative urban medical alliance platform in Anhui province, by combining with clinical experience and results of pilot survey in the communities, we constructed a nurse-led hospital-community mental health service model. Senior nurses with psychological consultant or psychotherapist certification were designated to the community to run a clinic of psychological consulting. Tasks of the senior nurses included the following aspects: conducting cross-sectional survey to explore the levels of anxiety, depression and sleep quality among the community residents and their needs, then identifying service contents; providing focused monitoring for such vulnerable populations as solitary elderly people, the families losing the only child and the left-behind children, and implementing dynamic psychological evaluation and intervention for them; designing distinctive mental health service to provide individualized service; and giving specialty training for community healthcare personnel by employing standardized patient and micro-lectures. Results Community residents′ attendance to the clinic gradually increased, totaling to 703 accounts within one and half year, and 112 residents signed for mental health service. The levels of knowledge of mental illness, mental health assessment skills, and mental symptom risk assessment skills of community healthcare personnel were significantly improved (P＜0.01 for all). Conclusion The nurse-led hospital-community mental health service model can supplement community mental health service, thus to enhance mental health of community-dwelling residents.