Objective To explore the effect of health education prescription on the self-management ability of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods 110 patients with RA in chronic disease outpatient clinic of the hospital were selected as subjects, and they were divided into the control group and the observation group by the random number table method. All patients were given routine treatment for RA. The control group was given conventional health education while the observation group was given RA health education prescription management. The two groups were given 6 months of intervention. After the intervention, the self-efficacy of patients was evaluated by the Chronic Disease Self Efficacy Scale (CDSES) and the General Self Efficacy Scale (GSES). The improvement of health behaviors, quality of life and medication compliance were evaluated with the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP II) and shortform of quality of life (SF-36), respectively, and the joint function was also evaluated. Results After the intervention, scores of CDSES and GSES in the control group ［(67.7±10.6) and (29.2±4.1)］ were significantly lower than those in the observation group ［(79.8±11.8) and (32.7±4.8)］ (P＜0.05). After the intervention, scores of health behavior indexes and the total score in observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P＜0.05). After intervention, the joint function in the two groups was significantly improved (P＜0.05), without significant difference between the two groups (P＞0.05). Conclusion The health education prescription management of rheumatoid arthritis can significantly improve the self-efficacy of patients with RA and improve their healthy behavior, thus improving their quality of life and the prognosis.