This week, the EFN attended the first joint EMPL-SANT committee session, that launched the work on the Joint EMPL-SANT Own-Initiative (INI) Report on ‘An EU health workforce crisis plan: sustainability of healthcare systems and employment and working conditions in the healthcare sector’. The co-rapporteurs and co-shadow rapporteurs took this opportunity to express their political priorities and exchange views with the European Commission DG SANTE and DG EMPL representatives, who will be in charge of implementing the recommendations as set out in the INI Report, once voted by the European Parliament Plenary in March 2026.
The co-rapporteurs Loucas Fourlas (EPP, Cyprus, EMPL Co-Rapporteur) and Ruggero Razza (ECR, Italy, SANT co-rapporteur) stressed the need to propose solutions to the problems starting from needs and requirements. For Loucas Fourlas the priority is to ensure that the appropriate number of patients is assigned to each nurse (Safe Staffing Levels), as well as addressing mental health and burnout through support programmes, and ensuring the mobility of healthcare professionals within the EU whilst tackling the issue of brain drain. He believes that we need to move away from subsidiarity, enabling the EU to take swift and concrete action to tackle the health workforce shortages. For Ruggero Razza, it is important that the EU facilitates coordination of Member States’ action, and that we find solutions to enable the Member States to use the funds from the European Social Fund+ and the Cohesion Policy Funds for health workforce capacity building and development.
With the huge shortage of healthcare professionals, it is more than time to act! We must invest in the workforce, and make sure to focus on what is really needed: improved attractiveness, improved working conditions, Safe Staffing Levels, and prevention of occupational psychosocial risk factors, as mentioned by Tilly Metz (the Greens, Luxembourg, SANT shadow).
The EFN will continue lobbying for a very concrete report that tackles the core issues affecting the nursing workforce, ensuring that it leads to real improvements.