The EFN Members just came out of their 117th General Assembly in Madrid, Spain, where key EU policy topics, having a huge impact on nurses were discussed. These included: 1/Advanced Practice Nursing (APN), for which the EFN is undertaking some developments, including a Roadmap, that contains examples on culture, practice and legislation change; 2/ Lifelong Learning (LLL)/Continuous Professional Development (CPD), for which the EFN members approved an EFN Policy Statement – From the nursing profession perspective, it is crucial to have high qualified nurses to guarantee the quality of care and patient safety; 3/ Safe Staffing levels, with an EFN Policy Statement approved by the EFN members – Taking into account the growing concerns on working conditions and shortage of registered nurses, and the ethical implications of recruiting nurses from non-European countries that also face workforce shortages, the EFN members are urging the EU and national policymakers to take immediate action to prioritise the welfare of nurses and patients alike; 4/ the current challenge that the health systems are facing in combating the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), with an EFN Policy Statement on AMR approved by the members – The European Commission is designing policies within the concept of ‘One Health for All, All for One Health’, and the revision of the EU’s pharmaceutical legislation provides an opportunity that cannot be missed.
The EFN also took the opportunity to collect key data on AMR led by nurses during its Tour de Table. It is important for EFN to identify best practices on AMR, next to the needs for policy initiatives based on developments led by nurses at national level and foster a common understanding and promote the implementation of the One Health concept.
Finally, the EFN members welcomed the new elected the Executive Committee, for a 2-year mandate (2023-2025), with a new EFN President: Aristides Chorattas, from the Cyprus Nurses and Midwives Association, and former Vice-President; Yves Mengal, from the Fédération Nationale des Infirmières de Belgique (FNIB), re-elected as Treasurer; and two new Executive Committee members: Dorthe Boe Danbjorg, from the Danish Nurses’ Organization (Denmark), and Tony Fitzpatrick, from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (Ireland).
