On Friday 17 January, the European Commission launched the first EU action to help Member States retain and attract nurses, with a budget of €1.3 million made available through the EU4Health programme.
The official launch of this initiative took place in Warsaw, at a meeting of heads of medical, nursing and dental services, as part of the Polish presidency of the EU Council.
The European Commission is implementing the action in partnership with WHO Europe.
The action will include activities in all EU Member States over a 36-month period, with a particular focus on countries facing significant health workforce challenges.
Thanks to close cooperation with Member States, nurses’ organisations and social partners, this initiative will be tailored to specific needs at national and subnational level.
Key activities of the initiative include mentoring programmes to attract a new generation of nurses, nurse workforce impact assessments to understand the issues behind structural shortages, strategies to improve the health and wellbeing of nurses and actions to help leverage digital transformation and AI.
European Commissioner for Health and Animal Safety Olivér Várhelyi stated that “We currently face a shortage of 1.2 million doctors, nurses and midwives across the EU, and there is a decline in interest in nursing careers across more than half of EU countries”. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)