1 July 2010 – 9.30h-18.00h – Sofitel Brussels Europe, Place Jourdan 1, 1040 Brussels According to the April 2010 Eurobarometer report Patient safety and quality of healthcare, “It is estimated that in EU Member States between 8% and 12% of patients admitted to hospitals suffer from adverse events whilst receiving healthcare.” EUNetPaS, was officially launched in February 2008 with the aim of establishing an umbrella network of all 27 EU Member States and EU stakeholders to encourage and enhance collaboration in the field of Patient Safety. The conference on 1 July 2010 will feature presentations of the main international programmes in the field, including the World Alliance for Patient Safety, the results of the EUNetPaS project as well as concrete experiences developed in Member States. There will also be a panel discussion between representatives of the European Federation of Nurses Associations, the European Hospital and Healthcare Federation, the European Patients’ Forum, the Pharmaceutical Group of the European Union and the Standing Committee of European Doctors. “EUNetPaS has demonstrated the ability of concerted EU actions to improve Patient Safety. The positive momentum created by this network at the EU level - primarily through the efforts of national platforms involving all stakeholders - has promoted the implementation of Patient Safety solutions in the field and raised the awareness at national level. Nevertheless, a lot remains to be done and political consistency will be the key to achieve further significant progress for the benefit of EU patients,” said Jean Bacou of the Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS), coordinator of the EUNetPaS project.
1. Promoting a Culture of Patient Safety – National representatives and experts will play a key role in the collection and exchange of information concerning Patient Safety at the Member State level;
Notes to the Editor: The EUNetPaS project is coordinated by the Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS) and funded and supported by the European Commission within the 2007 Public Health Programme. This network is linked to the ongoing Patient Safety initiative of the European Commission. EUNetPaS focuses on four key topic areas:

2. Structuring Education and Training in Patient Safety in Member States through (i) mutual exchange of experience and knowledge on learning interventions for healthcare professionals and involvement of patients and caregivers (ii) reaching out to decision makers in Higher Education to promote the integration of Patient Safety education in undergraduate and postgraduate medical and nursing curricula.
Proposal of a Core European curriculum for Patient Safety in higher education and as part of continuing education taking into account patients and health care professionals needs;

3. Implementing Reporting and Learning Systems – The identification, collection and structuring of Patient Safety information within the EU, providing Member States with a database of solutions to related issues which they can draw upon;

4. Pilot Implementation of Medication Safety – Improve medication safety in hospitals by identifying good practices, translating them into tools and testing these tools in selected hospitals.

Press Contact & Project Coordination: Dr Jean BACOU: j.bacou@has-sante.fr
Ms Maggie GALBRAITH: m.galbraith@has-sante.fr