Purpose To present the results of a survey involving 97 centralised intravenous admixture service (CIVAS) centres in China to review the recent advances of Chinese CIVAS.

Methods 103 CIVAS centres in first- or second-class Chinese hospital settings were surveyed by email questionnaire.

Results Ninety-seven centres responded(response rate 94%). With regard to scale and output issues, large CIVAS centres with a daily output of more than 10 000 bags accounted for 10% while the per workbench and per square metre output varied dramatically among different centres. For personnel structure, 80% of CIVAS centres chose the combination model of pharmacy and nursing. For the CIVAS operation model, more than 80% of centres adopted the drug centralised compounding model.

Conclusion CIVAS centres are playing an important role in Chinese hospital pharmacy and have developed into an emerging pharmaceutical industry. The development of Chinese CIVAS centres is very variable. With regard to the personnel structure, the pharmacy–nursing combination model is recommended, while the operation model should be selected according to specific hospitals. Universal guidelines for CIVAS operation and personnel training are urgently needed.