HOSPEEM-EPSU Webinar on MSD in the health sector

From evidence to practice – Exchange between social partners and the way forward, 25 February 2021, 11:00 – 13:00 CET

The Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for the Hospital and Healthcare Sector put its work and commitment on occupational safety and health (OSH) and in particular musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) in the top and centre of its Work Programme 2020-2022. Firstly, by updating its Framework of Actions on Recruitment and Retention with findings and practices from national social partners in the field of OSH, secondly by becoming EU-OSHA Healthy Workplace Campaign partners focusing on MSD; and thirdly by continuing to exchange on the relevance of the current regulatory framework on MSD at European level. Besides, HOSPEEM and EPSU have facilitated the development of the EU-OSHA discussion paper on MSD in the healthcare sector, which outlines the latest findings on MSD in the sector.

The webinar, organised jointly by HOSPEEM and EPSU, aims to exchange practices and discuss ideas with national sectoral social partners from the health sector across Europe to prevent MSD at the workplace. It will also look into the future, by enabling participants to provide input to the EU level social partners on the envisioned update on the Framework of Actions on Recruitment and Retention.

Watch the webinar video

Draft agenda (.pdf)

Presentation and background material:

Keynote on the discussion paper “Musculoskeletal disorders in the healthcare sector.” Lars L. Andersen, Professor, National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Denmark

Presentation of EU-OSHA Healthy Workplaces Campaign: Lighten the Load (2020 – 2022) Lorenzo Munar, Project Manager, EU-OSHA

Interactive break: how to use the TilThermometer – Nico Knibbe, Co-founder, LOCOmotion, Netherlands

Interventions from national social partners

Manual handling policy and training for the reduction of MSD in health care workers Nick Parkinson, National Health and Safety Manager, HSE, Ireland

Sotergo project – Anne Ranta, Work Environment Officer, JHL, Finland

ERGOPAR – Yolanda Gil Alonso, International and Youth Secretary, FSS-CCOO, Spain – in ES

Development and evaluation of risk assessment and interventions promoting safe patient manual handling in the Swedish healthcare sector – Strategies to prevent MSD – Charlotte Wåhlin, Associate Professor, Ergonomist, Linköping University, Sweden.

HOSPEEM-EPSU response to road map consultation on Cross-border healthcare – evaluation of patients’ rights (Directive 2011/24) 

HOSPEEM and EPSU were active in the process leading to the establishment of the Directive 2011/24, which regulates parts of the fundamental cornerstones of Member States’ health systems, such as the capacity to plan for the current as well as future needs within their respective systems. Reiterating the main messages from our joint letter from 15 December 2010, we would like to take the opportunity to underline that the Directive should aim to contribute to the quality and accessibility of patients’ care. Equal access to health care is a fundamental human right, which must be facilitated – to the extent possible – in the proximity of patients’ living surroundings or directly at the patient’s home, including through the use of digital solutions.

 It is paramount to support Member States to strengthen their national health systems, address the existing challenges and identify opportunities to create resilient health systems to improve patients’ cross-border healthcare access: This includes investment in health workforce and healthcare infrastructure comprising investment in working conditions to address health workforce shortages and medical deserts, access to continued professional development and life-long learning, coherent occupational safety and health prevention practices and guidelines as well as to reinforce equality in the access to healthcare between Member States and within them, taking into account the concept of integrated care. 

Download the HOSPEEM-EPSU response to road map consultation on Cross-border healthcare – evaluation of patients’ rights (Directive 2011/24)