In an interview in Luxembourg 2015, the EFN Secretary General, Paul De Raeve, stresses the crucial role mhealth, ehealth, data collection and Big Data play in keeping the patient at the center of the debate, namely in the context of an EU health system reform leaving an old medical traditional model towards a new integrated model in which continuity of care is the basis. In this process nurses play a key role in making sure that continuity of care, sharing information, data collection, and Big Data, are coming together.
He also highlights that in every development education and training are fundamental! As such it is important that nurses, and any other healthcare professionals, are coming out of school very well trained and educated (taking into account Directive 2005/36/EC, modernised by Directive 2013/55/EU), and that continuous professional development is part of their all carrier pathways.
Technology has understood that in order to establish integrated systems and bringing care closer to the citizens and their community, it is necessary to design ‘fit for practice’ continuity of care solutions in ICT. But without the right eSkills, technologies will not be fully integrated into existing healthcare pathways. Thus, eSkills need to be efficiently integrated in the healthcare professionals’ education and training at both undergraduate and postgraduate level as well as through Continuous Professional Development (CPD).