Brussels (The Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The European Commission supports measures across Europe to attract and retain nurses.
The European Commission has inscribed a contribution agreement with the WHO Regional Office for Europe (WHO Europe) to assist Member States in retaining nurses in their health systems and driving the profession more attractive to nurses.
How will the EU4Health programme support nurses across Europe?
The agreement, supported by €1.3 million from the EU4Health programme, will affect activities across all EU Member States over 36 months. Particular emphasis will be given to those countries with substantial shortages in healthcare workers, and specifically shortages in nurses.
What are the main goals of the EU’s €1.3 million contribution?
Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, stated: “Nurses are the backbone of our health systems and are critical in ensuring that patients receive high-quality, professional care when they need it. Today’s action is a sign of our commitment to address the serious health workforce issues that many Member States are facing and to improve the resilience of health systems across the European Health Union. We are delighted to work with WHO Europe on this important initiative.”
What are the expected benefits of this initiative for health systems?
Through close co-function with the Member States, nurses’ organisations and social partners, the endeavour will be tailored to specific requirements at national and sub-national levels.
The funding will include developing recruitment action plans, mentoring programmes to draw a new generation of nurses, drafting nurse force impact assessments to understand the problems behind these structural deficiencies and strategies to enhance the health and well-being of nurses, and executing training opportunities and activities to ensure the healthcare workforce can reap benefits of the digital transformation.
How does the EU4Health programme contribute to crisis preparedness?
The EU4Health programme was assumed as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to strengthen crisis preparedness in the EU. The pandemic underscored the fragility of national health systems. The EU4Health programme will bring contribute to the long-term health challenges by creating stronger, more resilient and more accessible health systems.
According to the European Union, health is an investment and, with a €5.3 billion allocation during the 2021-27 period, the EU4Health programme is an exceptional EU financial support in the health area. EU4Health is a clear note that public health is a focus of the EU and it is one of the main tools to pave the way to a European Health Union.
