On 1st January 2025, until 30 June 2025, Poland took over the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU. The running theme of the Polish EU Presidency is “Security, Europe!”. under which Poland defined 7 pillars of Security, including Health Security. This decision comes following the insecurity which became evident following the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as climate change, AMR, and the conflicts on the EU borders.
To tackle this state of multi and perma-crisis, the Polish EU presidency will focus on several key healthcare topics to strengthen the resilience of EU healthcare systems, including prevention and health promotion, the digital transformation of healthcare, cybersecurity, gender equality, social dialogue, and long-term care. EFN welcomes the choice of these priority topics, as these have the potential to support and improve the nursing profession in the EU and Europe.
At the helm of the Polish EU Presidency is Izabela Leszczyna, the Minister of Health of Poland, whom EFN met in Gdansk at a high-level national conference on APN in May 2024. We look forward to working with Isabela on key EU files important for nurses in the EU and Europe. The starting point will be on 17 January, with the launch of the EU-WHO Nursing Action in Warsaw. EFN is one of the key health stakeholders in the nursing action, focusing on Nursing Students Mentorship and Safe Staffing Levels.
Therefore, once again EFN would like to offer its congratulations and best wishes to the Polish EU Presidency for its very important work, and looks forward to collaborating closely with the Polish EU presidency to support EU nurses and the resilience of EU healthcare systems!