Objective To understand the implementation status of ideological and political theory education in teaching among nursing teachers, and to provide references for enriching and improving the construction of ideological and political theory education in nursing. Methods A web-based questionnaire survey was conducted from October to November 2023 with convenience sampling method to investigate the cognition, emotion and behavior of ideological and political theory education among 305 nursing teachers from 9 universities or higher vocational colleges in Guizhou province. Results The participants′ total score of cognition, emotion and behavior of ideological and political theory education was（39.51±7.21）, and the subscale scores of cognition, emotion and behavior were （14.14±2.98）, （13.68±2.23） and （11.70±3.58）, respectively. The multiple linear regression analysis showed that, age, political offiliation, the presided number of ideological and political theory education reform projects, and the times participated in ideological and political theory education training were the main factors influencing the implementation of ideological and political theory education (all P<0.05). The multiple response analysis showed that, insufficient awareness of the importance of ideological and political theory education, lack of relevant teaching skills, single teaching method and inadequate communication and cooperation platform among peers were the main difficulties and barriers for nursing teachers implementing ideological and political theory education. Conclusion Nursing teachers′ cognition and emotion towards ideological and political theory education are at medium levels, while their behavior is at medium or under level. It is suggested to improve the construction mechanism of ideological and political theory education, deeply explore the cultivation potential of professional courses, and encourage nursing teachers to actively participate in the construction and reform research of ideological and political theory education.