Issue 1 - January 2017 

HOSPEEM NEWS

HOSPEEM General Assembly and Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee plenary meeting

On 1st December 2016 HOSPEEM members participated in the HOSPEEM General Assembly in Brussels. A revised version of the HOSPEEM Statutes was adopted during the meeting. The discussions focused mainly on the joint HOSPEEM-EPSU work programme 2017-2019. Daniel Molinuevo, research officer at Eurofound, was invited to present the findings of the Eurofound study “Delivering hospital services: A greater role for the private sector?”, aimed at mapping the private provision of hospital services across Europe and to analyse the implications for services users in terms of efficiency, accessibility and quality.

On this occasion, the 10th anniversary of HOSPEEM was celebrated at the European Economic and Social Committee. A first HOSPEEM brochure was published, stressing the major achievements of the last ten years.

The Plenary meeting of the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for the Hospital Sector (SSDC HS) took place the following day, on 2 December 2016. On that occasion, HOSPEEM and EPSU celebrated the 10th anniversary of their Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for the Hospital and Healthcare Sector. The hospital social partners were honoured and delighted to host Mr. Xavier Prats Monné, Director General of DG SANTE, and Mr. Michel Servoz, Director General of DG EMPL during the celebration that was attended by more than 70 participants.

During the meeting HOSPEEM members and EPSU affiliates exchanged on the next HOSPEEM-EPSU work programme 2017-2019 in view of its adoption in February 2017. In addition, a brief overview of the joint HOSPEEM-EPSU project on recruitment and retention related issues (2017-2018) was presented.

The respective dates of HOSPEEM and HOSPEEM-EPSU meetings for 2017 are listed in the events section on the HOSPEEM website.

Finalisation of the HOSPEEM-EPSU Joint Declaration on CPD and LLL for all Health Workers in the EU

HOSPEEM and EPSU finalised and adopted their Joint Declaration on Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and Life-Long Learning (LLL) for all Health Workers in the EU in November 2016, after several months of work and negotiations. 

It is addressed to all workers in the hospital and healthcare sector in an equal manner, irrespective of age, profession and employment contract. The joint declaration is structured along a statement of key principles that should guide activities undertaken in the field of CPD and LLL.

It aims at providing inspiration, guidance and support to social partners in their actions in the field of CPD and LLL in the different Member States and at encouraging investments in this field.

The HOSPEEM-EPSU joint declaration will be enriched in 2017 with a separate document gathering existing good practice examples that will be elaborated in the context of a joint HOSPEEM-EPSU EU-funded project. The joint declaration is now available in English, French, German, Swedish and Spanish.  Read more.

HOSPEEM-EPSU project on R&R granted by DG EMPL

The joint HOSPEEM-EPSU project proposal “Promoting effective recruitment and retention policies for health workers in the EU by ensuring access to CPD and healthy and safe workplaces supportive of patient safety and quality care” has recently been accepted by DG EMPL. Two conferences will be organised in the framework of the project, a first one on CPD in June 2017 in the Netherlands and a second one on OSH in March 2018 in Lithuania. Support is currently being sought from an external expert to help facilitating the implementation of the project. A call for tender will be soon available on the HOSPEEM website. 

NEWS FROM MEMBERS 

EU NEWS

Malta EU Presidency 

For the first time since its accession in 2004, Malta assumes the rotating Presidency of the Council of the EU from 1st January 2017 until 1st June 2017. The Maltese agenda for the next six months will consist of six priority areas: migration, single market, security, social inclusion, Europe's neighbourhood and maritime sector. Read more.

European Commission’s Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition

On 1st December the European Commission launched in Brussels the Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition, together with Member States, companies, social partners, NGOs and education providers, to tackle the lack of digital skills in Europe. The Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition is one of the ten key initiatives proposed by the Commission under the New Skills Agenda for Europe, presented in June last year. All organisations, groups or government bodies taking action to boost digital skills in Europe can become members of the Coalition by endorsing the objectives and principles of the Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition Members Charter. As a second step, members are encouraged to make pledges for action in the areas identified in the Charter. Read more.

EU Social Partners New Autonomous Framework Agreement

The European cross-industry social partners concluded on 1st December 2016 their negotiations on a new autonomous framework agreement for active ageing and an intergenerational approach. The EU social partners designed an agreement that could respond to the challenge of demographic ageing and its consequences on enterprises and workers, while favouring a life-cycle approach by building bridges between generations.

European Commission EU Semester Autumn Package

On 16 November the Commission released the EU Semester Autumn package, containing a series of budgetary documents launching the 2017 European Semester Cycle. This package provides further guidance for the economic and social policies of the Member States. The Commission calls upon the Member States to redouble their efforts along the so-called virtuous triangle of economic policy – relaunching investment, pursuing structural reforms and ensuring responsible fiscal policies. This year, emphasis is placed on the importance of ensuring social fairness to stimulate more inclusive growth, as well as on the need to strengthen competitiveness, innovation and productivity. Together with the Autumn Package the Commission released its Annual Growth Survey (AGS) for the year 2017. Read more.

Follow-up to the EU joint action on HWF planning and forecasting

The Consumers, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency recently launched a call for tender concerning the support for the health workforce planning and forecasting expert network, funded under the EC Health Programme 2016. The purpose of this 3-year contract is to sustain cross-country cooperation and provide support to Member States to increase their knowledge, improve their tools and succeed in achieving a higher effectiveness in health workforce planning processes and policy. It will serve to continue the work undertaken by the EU joint action on health workforce planning and forecasting. The deadline for submission is 30 January 2017. Read more.

Quality and Effective Apprenticeships and Work-based Learning

On 2 December, the tri-partite Advisory Committee on Vocational Training (ACVT) unanimously adopted an Opinion on a Shared Vision on Quality and Effective Apprenticeships and Work-based Learning. It calls on the Commission to develop a set of support services for knowledge sharing, networking and cooperation to assist where needed apprenticeship and work-based learning reforms at national level as well as promote higher levels of mobility of apprentices across Europe.

This opinion supports the actions to modernise vocational education and training (VET) defined in the Investing in Europe's Youth package recently adopted by the Commission.

EPSCO Council

The main result of the EPSCO Council held on 8 December was the agreement reached on three new regulations governing Eurofound, EU-OSHA and Cedefop. These new regulations aim to update the objectives, tasks and activities of the agencies in order to reflect recent societal, institutional and economic developments as well as new requirements. Read more

Revision of the EU legislation on social security coordination

On 13 December the Commission presented a proposal to modernise EU rules on social security coordination in order to facilitate labour mobility, ensure fairness for those who move and for taxpayers, and provide better tools for cooperation between Member State authorities. The proposal updates the EU rules in the following four areas: unemployment benefits; long term care benefits; access of economically inactive citizenship to social benefits; social security coordination for posted workers. Read more. 

EU-OSHA infographic on ageing workforce

EU OSHA recently published an infographic on Europe’s ageing workforce as part of the current Healthy Workplaces for All Ages campaign. It illustrates the landscape of the European ageing workforce and displays the main elements of successful age management. The infographic brings up the need of balancing personal resources and work-related factors, as well as adjusting the work environment to the changing capacities of workers. Read more. 

PAST EVENTS  

European Week for Safety and Health at Work

From 24 to 28 October the 2016 European Week for Safety and Health at Work was celebrated across Europe through the organisation of activities aimed at promoting healthy ageing and sustainable work for all ages. It brought together EU-OSHA’s network of partners, workers and employers to exchange best practices and generate ideas on how make workplaces more sustainable. Read more.

European Vocational Skills Week

The European Commission organised the first European Vocational Skills Week from 5 to 9 December 2016. The aim of this event was to improve the attractiveness and image of vocational education and training, to showcase excellence and quality and raise awareness on the wide range of opportunities. More than 900 events took place all over Europe – in all 28 EU Member States, EFTA and EU Candidate countries – demonstrating the crucial role of VET in supporting skills, jobs, innovation and competitiveness. Read more.

FUTURE EVENTS

HOSPEEM-EPSU events - SAVE the DATE! 

27/02/2017,16:30-18:00 : HOSPEEM Steering Committee

27/02/2017 : HOSPEEM – EPSU Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for Hospital SectorWorking Group 1

Other events:

19/01/2017: European Commission consultation hearing with social partners on the Working Time Directive 

European conference on the Pillar of Social Rights

On 23 January 2017, the Commission will hold in Brussels a European conference on the Pillar of Social Rights. It will be an important milestone in wrapping up the consultation and defining the future direction of the European Pillar of Social Rights. The public consultation, launched in March 2016 by the Commission, ended on 31 December. Tjitte Alkema, Secretary General of HOSPEEM, will attend the conference. Read more.

PUBLICATIONS

New Health at a Glance report

The new Health at a Glance: Europe 2016 report is the initial result of the first two-year State of Health in the EU cycle; it provides Member States with reliable information and sound expert analysis. The report examines the health systems in the EU Member States and highlights obstacles that prevent them from being as effective, accessible and resilient as they could be. Read more.

Gupta Strategists Report "No Place like Home"

Hospital use has significantly changed and decreased over past decades. This report analyses the feasibility and the impact of moving patients out of hospitals and providing them with the care and treatment they need in their own homes in The Netherlands. According to this study approximately 46% of hospital care could be moved to the home thanks to remote monitoring and data analysis. As the development towards less care in institutions and more care at patients’ homes progresses, the impact on the care landscape will be enormous and all stakeholders will be impacted. Read more. 

European Employment Policy Observatory report on the role of social partners in the design and implementation of policies and reforms

In view of the increased policy attention to social dialogue at European level, and given the large diversity in practices across different countries, this overview report aims at providing detailed information on the channels and practices through which national social partners contribute to policy making in the EU Member States. Read more.

Crossing a border for a medical treatment - Commission data

The Commission published data from 23 EU countries on their use of the Cross-border Healthcare Directive in 2015 and a study on effective cross-border cooperation between EU Member States for high-cost medical equipment investments. Health Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis emphasised the importance of this legislation for patients' rights and called for further work to improve patient information and National Contact Points coordination. The Commissioner underlined the importance of enhanced cooperation with patient organisations, healthcare providers and insurers. Read more.

EC Study on big data in public health 

In the context of this study "big data in health" refers to large collected datasets which are electronically captured. Using Big Data in health has many potential benefits. It may contribute to increasing the effectiveness and quality of treatments available for patients, widening possibilities for disease prevention by identifying risk factors at population, subpopulation and individual levels, improving pharmacovigilance and patient safety. Read more.

CEEP Project “Social services in European cross-industry Social dialogue: towards a strong and deeper involvement” – Final short report published 

This report summarises the findings of a CEEP project aimed at identifying existing social services structures in 14 selected EU Member States and the conditions for their active involvement at the cross-industry level of European social dialogue. The project was supported by SALAR, SWO, UNISOC, UZS and HOSPEEM. Read more.

EC 2016 Review on Employment and Social Developments in Europe

This annual review of employment and social developments in Europe highlights more employment, less poverty and a changing world of work...Read more.

EC Study on obstacles to recognition of skills and qualifications 

This study clarifies the practical obstacles to the recognition of skills and qualifications and their underlying causes and explore potential solutions...Read more.

European Observatory study on health system efficiency: How to make measurement matter for policy and management

This simple analytical framework can facilitate the development and interpretation of efficiency indicators for health policy-makers...Read more.

WHO report on eHealth innovation and implementation in the European Region

This report highlights new areas of technology that hold great potential for improving the quality and effectiveness of health care and policy. Read more.

Antimicrobial resistance – OECD Policy Insights 

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a significant burden on healthcare systems. The OECD is undertaking a comprehensive evaluation to combat the imminent threat of AMR. Read more.