An EU health workforce crisis plan: sustainability of healthcare systems and employment and working conditions in the healthcare sector

‘Underlines that safe staffing levels, good working conditions and the right combination of professionals in the healthcare workforce are essential for patient safety, quality of care and staff well-being; calls moreover on the Commission to propose a Council recommendation setting out common principles for safe, evidence-based and high-quality staffing for the whole healthcare workforce, anchored in patient safety outcomes, social dialogue and collective bargaining and risk-based assessment while fully respecting the diversity of healthcare system models; calls for such a recommendation to recognise unsafe staffing levels as an occupational hazard;’

‘calls on the Commission to consider the need for an obligatory framework to this end which comprises workload controls and doctor-to-patient/nurse-to-patient ratios, including in high-acuity settings and measures to relieve the physical, psychological and administrative burden faced by healthcare workers, aiming to reduce errors and strengthening overall healthcare system performance, while recognising the need for flexibility for health organisations to adapt to labour-market realities and workforce planning priorities without compromising quality of care or patient safety;’

‘calls on the Member States to adopt, implement and regularly review national legislative frameworks thereafter, including minimum thresholds and benchmarks on safe staffing, as well as minimum consultation times that are sufficient to ensure an accurate assessment and appropriate care of patients with increasingly complex clinical profiles, also in the light of the expansion of treatment options, where applicable; calls for national approaches to be based on evidence, clinical context, social dialogue and collective agreements, ensuring transparent reporting on quality and safety indicators;’

‘Stresses the need for a coordinated approach by the, the WHO and the EU to monitoring the flow of healthcare workers, promoting ethical rules for international mobility and preventing brain drain;’

‘stresses that, where international recruitment is needed, it should not be considered the only tool for the long-term sustainability of healthcare systems, and should be regarded as a complementary measure, and must comply with ethical principles as set out in the WHO Global Code of Practice, so as to prevent creating or exacerbating workforce shortages in countries of origin and to improve relevant monitoring;’

‘welcomes the inclusion of certain categories of healthcare professions in the list of EU-wide shortage occupations as part of an array of measures addressing labour shortages in the EU,’