A retrospective analysis was conducted on 72 patients with hypertension complicated by diabetic foot ulcers who were treated in our hospital between January 2020 and February 2023. According to the nursing approach documented in the medical records, patients were assigned to a motivation-oriented behavioral change-based rehabilitation nursing group (n = 36) or a routine nursing group (n = 36). Outcomes included systolic and diastolic blood pressure, fasting and 2-hour postprandial blood glucose, ulcer healing rates at 7, 14, and 28 days, foot function scores, overall clinical effectiveness, self-management ability, treatment adherence, disease knowledge mastery, and diabetes-specific quality of life assessed by the Diabetes-Specific Quality of Life Scale. Baseline characteristics were comparable between groups. After nursing, the rehabilitation nursing group demonstrated lower blood pressure and blood glucose levels than the routine group, with statistically significant between-group differences. Ulcer healing rates were similar at day 7, but were higher in the rehabilitation nursing group at days 14 and 28. Foot function scores improved in both groups, with greater improvement in the rehabilitation nursing group. The total effective rate of foot recovery was higher in the rehabilitation nursing group. In addition, self-management ability, adherence, and knowledge mastery increased after nursing, and post-intervention quality of life scores were lower (indicating better quality of life) in the rehabilitation nursing group. These findings suggest that motivation-oriented behavioral change integrated into rehabilitation nursing is associated with improved short-term clinical and patient-reported outcomes in this population.