Some fifty representatives of governments, employers, donors, trade unions, policy analysts, planners, researchers and professional nursing organisations, from all regions of the world met in Geneva, Switzerland 14-16 March 2005 at the invitation of the International Council of Nurses to identify priorities and actions to deal with the critical imbalance and shortage in the nursing workforce worldwide.
Participants called on global and national partners to take immediate action along the following lines:
Action at the global level
- Increase resources to support the development of comprehensive human resource strategies;
- Explore using global health funds to strengthen human resource delivery infrastructures, including education;
- Form strategic alliances between governments, donors, agencies, educators, regulators, unions and associations;
- Build capacity in the area of human resource planning and management;
- Build national self-sufficiency to manage domestic issues of supply and demand;
- Support international code for ethical recruitment; effective monitoring of international flows; regulation and independent monitoring of international recruitment agencies; and respect for international labour instruments; and
- Improve access to high-quality technical assistance.
Action at the country level
- Consider the range of nursing personnel required to meet national health needs;
- Embrace new models of care, with an emphasis on primary care, and new technologies;
- Address issues of skill mix and the delegation/devolution of some tasks to other workers; and
- Improve workloads and working conditions.
