Strengthening healthcare systems must start with the workforce

Strengthening healthcare systems must start with the workforce:

Priority no. 1 for the future of an EU Health Union!

European healthcare systems are essential for sustainable and competitive societies – and of course for the well-being and the quality of life. Yet too often, they suffer from a lack of staff, an up-to-date equipment, competent management, an efficient work organization, and not least from sufficient investment.

The consequences for the workers: excessive workloads, precariousness, unsafe work environments (exposure to dangerous substances, third party violence); and an extreme exposure to physical and psycho-social risks.

On May 23rd, CESI´s Expert Commission ‘SAN’ discussed the most pressing issues among themselves and with various experts.

Workforce shortages:

Many European countries are grappling with a shortage of healthcare professionals, including doctors and nurses. This shortage is often exacerbated in rural areas, where access to healthcare services can be limited. The underlying reasons are, unfortunately, too often a lack of recognition, good working conditions and fair remuneration. Through several bilateral meetings with MEPs, CESI proposed to hold a public hearing in the European Parliament in the second half of this year with the aim of addressing the problems and needs of the millions of nurses and doctors working across Europe.

Skills Mismatch:

Rapid advancements in healthcare technologies and evolving healthcare needs require continuous professional development and upskilling of the healthcare workforce. A major gap between the skills possessed by healthcare professionals and the skills demanded by the evolving healthcare landscape persists. Through the BeWell project, CESI brings in its perspective on the needed future skills of healthcare professionals. Among others, upskilling and reskilling should be considered as workers’ rights to training on the job.

EU4Health Initiative:

The flagship program of the European Union wants to help strengthen healthcare systems and address healthcare workforce challenges. Launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, it seeks to improve the resilience, accessibility, and quality of healthcare services across the EU member states. The initiative also aims at enhancing the capacity and availability of healthcare professionals, including through training programs, recruitment and retention initiatives, and cross-border cooperation. For CESI, it is of utmost importance that the interests of the workforce are duly taken into consideration.

EU Care Strategy

The European healthcare workforce plays a pivotal role in meeting the healthcare needs of the population. The EU Care Strategy will become operational by 2024 and through the national contact points trade unions EU-wide could contribute to the national action plans foreseen to put the Strategy in practice. Despite the fact that the care workers are at the centre of the strategy, CESI deplores the weak nature of the initiative, the lack of an effective monitoring mechanism and the lack of sufficient and accessible means of financing investments in the health and care sectors.

Summarizing the meeting, Esther Reyes, president of the CESI expert commission ‘Health Services’ said: ‘We need to establish a minimum European quota of nurses and doctors per patients. We need to ensure that the needs and interests of the healthcare staff are properly considered. Above all, we need to improve their working conditions to ensure the recruitment and retention in the healthcare sector. Otherwise, the system will collapse.’