As many cancer nurses are again working through new peaks of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EONS Board and Team would like to send our full support in this difficult time, understanding the extra strain and pressure that this puts on you and the potentially negative impacts that the pandemic has on your patients and cancer care.
We will be doing all that we can to continue to bring you all the latest useful information about how to get through the coming months as we wait and hope for the development of an effective vaccine and ever-improving treatments. In the meantime, remember to try and maintain your own mental and physical health. Here are some practical self-care tips which you may find helpful:
• Eat good nutritious food
• keep well hydrated and avoid excess alcohol
• take rest and naps where you can and try to get adequate sleep
• take fresh air and exercise, especially walking
• practise relaxation techniques such as breathing exercises
• make sure you are okay to drive when coming off a long shift • stay connected to others and speak to someone about any concerns you may have • remember that a better future will come. |
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JOIN EONS AND CATCH UP
ON THE EONS13 CONFERENCE, FREE! |
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The virtual EONS13 conference offered a rich context in which cancer nurses can develop their learning and skills. Registered participants can still watch all sessions here. Please note that if you have not yet done so, you can still register to view and benefit – it costs just 35€ and secures your EONS membership right up to the end of December 2021. Don’t miss this fantastic bargain!
Find out more |
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| EONS NUTRICANURSE WEBINAR – DON'T MISS IT |
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The EONS NutriCaNurse webinar takes place on 26 November from 12-3pm CET. This high quality event will look at the issues around cancer and malnutrition and describe the main causes and issues associated with nutritional problems in cancer patients. There will be a focus on the different tools used to evaluate risk, the treatments and care interventions available, and also on educating patients about this important part of their recovery. Please pre-register at the link below. You will then be sent the Zoom link to the webinar.
Register here |
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| JOIN THE EONS YCN NETWORK |
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The EONS Young Cancer Nurses Network is looking for new members. We are looking for nurses under the age of 35 who are working in cancer care settings in the WHO Europe region. Are you passionate about supporting the development of young cancer nurses throughout Europe? Do you have the time, enthusiasm and commitment to help EONS develop the EONS Young Cancer Nurses Network and increase its impact across Europe? If the answer is ‘yes’ then why not join us? We’d love to hear from you. The deadline for applications is 7 December 2020.
Find out more |
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EONS YOUNG CANCER NURSES
NIGHTINGALE CHALLENGE WEBINAR SERIES |
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Webinar 4: Career Advice – Developing your Career – Advanced Practice takes place on Tuesday 17 November at 17:00 GMT /18:00 CET/ 19:00 EET. The speakers are Celia Diez de Los Rios, of the EONS Education Working Group, and EONS President-Elect Johan De Munter. Young cancer nurses face a variety of personal and professional challenges that are unique to their generation as a result of changing political and economic environments globally. The Young Cancer Nurses’ Network Nightingale Challenge provides young cancer nurses with an opportunity to engage in a series of educational webinars which provide information about personal and professional development in cancer nursing. We welcome you to join us for our Nightingale Webinar Series; you may register to attend as many webinars as you wish.
Register
Save the Date for the remaining Nightingale Challenge Webinars:
Webinar 5: Career Advice - Developing your Career - Research on Monday, 23 November Webinar 6: Career Advice - Developing your Career - Education on Monday, 30 November Webinar 7: Career Advice – Developing a Clinical - Academic Career on Thursday, 10 December |
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EONS SEEKS PART-TIME RESEARCH ASSISTANT –
APPLY NOW! |
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| A part-time Research Assistant is sought to support an externally funded EONS research project entitled: Establishing a core set of patient-reported outcomes and measures to enhance supportive care for people treated with targeted therapies for advanced renal cell carcinoma or advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. The timeframe is: December 2020 to June 2022 (126 weeks/32 months/2.6 years). Please apply with your CV and one-page letter of motivation outlining how you meet the job specifications to Iveta Nohavova: [email protected] by Sunday 15 November 2020. Interviews will take place towards the end of November and the position is due to start by 15 December 2020.
Find out more and apply |
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| NOVICE RESEARCH DISSEMINATION AWARD WINNER |
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2020 saw two winners of the EONS Novice Research Dissemination Award: Phillipa Jupp and Lin Cheng. Congratulations to them both! This award is an initiative of the EONS Research Working Group. It was launched in 2013 to encourage cancer nurses who are relatively new to research. Last month, we told you about Phillipa’s work, this month we update you on Lin Cheng’s abstract, entitled “Self-management interventions (SMIs) can promote health-related quality of life after primary treatment for early-stage breast cancer, but to what extent? A critical synthesis of the evidence.” The conclusion was that SMIs are potentially effective after primary treatment for breast cancer, although the effects are small and inconsistent across HRQoL domains; more rigorous development and testing is recommended.
Find out more |
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| EEBR MASTERCLASS POSTPONED |
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Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the EEBR 2020 Masterclass faculty has decided to postpone this event (which was scheduled to take place in November 2020 in Belgrade) to a later date in 2021. The new date will be confirmed as soon as possible.
Find out more |
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CONFERENCE ON WORKERS’ PROTECTION FROM EXPOSURE TO HAZARDOUS MEDICINAL PRODUCTS (HMD)
24 – 25 SEPTEMBER, 2020 |
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The European Commission is financing a study to support a preparatory work concerning a possible EU initiative to improve the protection of workers from exposure to hazardous medicinal products (HMPs). The study focuses on the assessment of different options concerning the protection of workers from exposure to HMPs, including cytotoxic medicinal products under the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive, CMD (Directive 2004/37/EC). At the moment, cytotoxic medicinal products are not included in this directive and therefore not well regulated in Europe.
The study in particular aims to:
› Identify the risks to workers’ health arising from exposure to the concerned medicinal products;
› Provide recent, updated and robust information on HMPs, including cytotoxic medicinal products;
› Explore the best ways to address worker’s exposure including possible amendments to the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive (CMD), amendments to legislation outside the Occupational Safety and Health domain or developing or updating non-legislative instruments at EU level.
In September, EONS Past-President and Chair of the Advocacy Working Group, Dr Lena Sharp, was a presenter and panelist in the conference where the preliminary results of this study were presented and discussed. Other participants included our partners in the European Society of Oncology Pharmacists, representatives of the pharmaceutical industry and trade unions.
The study identified what thousands of nurses working with cytotoxic products in Europe already know, that HMDs are in use throughout health system supply chains thus endangering not just cancer nurses but also:
Production of active substances and HMPs: Production workers and laboratory staff Packaging and transport, delivery and storage: Drivers Preparation of medicines: Pharmacy staff, pharmacy technicians, pharmacists, animal caretakers, veterinary doctors Administration of medicines: Nurses, animal caretakers, veterinary doctors Monitoring and surveillance: Laboratory and hospital staff Healthcare facilities cleaning and laundry: Laundry and cleaning staff Waste and wastewater treatment: Hospital, waste handling, and technical staff
Dr Sharp presented the results of the EONS Cancer Nursing Index 2020 © which covers access to safety guidelines and personal protection equipment (PPE) for handling cytotoxic drugs, systematic testing of occupational exposure, guidelines and exposure for pregnant and/or breast-feeding nurses, whistle blower policies, formal training before administering cytotoxic drugs and finally, frequency of nurses preparing cytotoxic drugs. On behalf of EONS and our members, she strongly argued for better physical and whistle-blower protection, education and training for cancer nurses and hospital managers across Europe, and the inclusion of HMDs and substances toxic for reproduction in Annex 1 of the CMD.
The next phase of this work will be to collaborate with our partners and allies to advocate to the European Parliament for amendments to the CMD that reflect these concerns. Stay tuned to future EONS newsletters for our next steps and how to get involved in this campaign.
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EONS PARTICIPATION
IN WORKFORCE PLANNING NETWORK |
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| On 28 October 2020, the joint tender ‘Support for the Health Workforce Planning and Forecasting Expert Network’ (SEPEN) organised its closing event to look at the achievements of the past years and explore opportunities for future EU level cooperation in initiatives for health workforce planning. The EONS Advocacy Working Group members provided feedback on the series of workshops with the title: “Digital health: what are the implications for supply, demand, monitoring and organisation of health workforce?” which took place earlier in June, September and October to explore the use of digitalisation in healthcare and to examine how educating the healthcare workforce could contribute to implementing artificial intelligence and appliance of robotics in clinical setting and hospitals in EU Member States. One of the achievements which the SEPEN expert network contributed to is the development of an eBook describing the health workforce planning systems and policies of all EU Member States and the United Kingdom which summarise information on national planning systems, data sources used, challenges which the countries’ systems are facing, and relevant policies, similar to the EONS Cancer Nursing Index 2020. Cancer nurses are at the center of moving into the digital health age and EONS calls for more collaboration between the European Institutions and Member States to invest in education and training programmes for cancer nurses in order to equip them with the necessary technical knowledge and skills to support their daily activities, provide affordable and accessible solutions for everyone everywhere, empower patient involvement in self-diagnosis to avoid late treatments and tackle shortages by exchanging data to remove these barriers.
You can read the Full Report here |
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| EUROPE'S BEATING CANCER PLAN (EBCP) |
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| The European Commission has confirmed that we are still on track to see the release of Europe’s Beating Cancer plan in December. While we wait for further developments in this area, the European Parliament’s Special Committee on Cancer (BECA), released this report with the aim of influencing the EBCP. |
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| TACKLING COVID-19 IN EUROPE |
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| Many countries across the European region and beyond have faced another steep surge in transmissions and a continued challenge from COVID-19. This special issue of Eurohealth reviews some of the innovative practices across the European region and outlines policy lessons for the future. All the articles draw on the COVID-19 Health System Response Monitor (HSRM) platform, a major initiative led by the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, the WHO Regional Office for Europe and the European Commission. You can find more information about the COVID-19 perspectives, preventing transmission, ensuring sufficient workforce capacity, governance, providing and paying health services effectively here |
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| HEALTH AFTER COVID-19 – INTERVIEW |
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| Setting ambitious health targets at the European level after the COVID-19 crisis is not only a matter of necessity but also of duty, particularly to combat those diseases that have a negative impact on the life expectancy of citizens, centre-right lawmaker Aldo Patriciello told EURACTIV in a recent interview. In this wide-ranging conversation he explores how COVID and the cancer plan should lead to more competency for the EU on health and welcomes the first European Parliament intergroup dedicated to cancer.
Read the full interview |
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| HOW TO TACKLE PANDEMIC FATIGUE – WHO/EUROPE |
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| WHO/Europe has been discussing how to deal with pandemic fatigue. In recent weeks, many countries have been reporting an increase in “pandemic fatigue”: people feeling demotivated about following recommended behaviours to protect themselves and others from the virus. Finding effective ways to tackle this fatigue and reinvigorate public vigilance is a growing challenge as the crisis continues. Pandemic fatigue evolves gradually over time and is affected by the cultural, social, structural and legislative environment. High-level public health experts from over 30 countries and many partner organisations from the WHO European region have searched for the root causes of this phenomenon and shared national experiences and plans. At the request of European Member States, WHO/Europe has developed a framework of policy recommendations to guide governments in the planning and implementation of national and subnational strategies to bolster public support for COVID-19 prevention measures.
Find out more |
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SMOKING PREVENTION –
A CORE HEALTH SERVICE ACTIVITY |
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| A webinar on “Tobacco treatment delivery in cancer patients in Europe” organised by the European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention (ENSP) and the European Cancer Patient Coalition (ECPC) took place on 16 October to address the importance of smoking cessation during or after cancer treatment. Although 30% of cancer deaths are directly caused by smoking, continuing to smoke after diagnosis is not rare, and affects treatment outcomes, increases mortality rates or the recurrence of developing a new cancer. Cristian-Silviu BUŞOI, Member of the European Parliament argued that sustainable funding needs to be allocated for tobacco measures in all European countries to raise awareness on prevention via the use of mass media, campaigns, labelling and increasing taxing of tobacco products. Smoking is the number one preventable to reduce diseases including cancer and puts additional strain on social and health systems. All panellists agreed that European countries should adopt a strategy for smoking cessation in order to ensure that tobacco cessation programmes become a core national health service activity with training being introduced into all undergraduate and postgraduate healthcare professional curricula. |
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WORLD HEALTH DIGITAL SUMMIT
25 - 27 OCTOBER 2020 |
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The World Health Summit is one of the world’s leading strategic forums for global health.
Every October, the World Health Summit draws international experts from academia, politics, the private sector, and civil society to Berlin. During the three-day summit, stakeholders and decision-makers from 100 countries and every field in healthcare work together to find solutions to global health challenges and set the agenda for a healthier future.
The World Health Summit was founded in 2009 on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of Berlin’s Charité Hospital and is traditionally held under the patronage of the German Chancellor, the President of the Republic of France, the President of the European Commission, and the Director-General of the World Health Organization.
In addition to the World Health Summit in Berlin, there are annual Regional Meetings and regular Expert Meetings around the world. These meetings are organized by the M8 Alliance, the academic backbone of the World Health Summit. |
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| Achieving Health for All through Digital Collaboration
Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), opened the session by pointing out that COVID-19 is the first pandemic of the digital age, with positive implications for how we can screen populations, track increasing disease rates and monitor resources and social and environmental determinants of health. Dr Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, stated that 2020 is a year of transformation in which digital solutions became essential to managing the pandemic and responding better to the crisis: improving accessibility and communication and keeping people at the centre of healthcare. Attention was drawn to the creation of a European Health Data Space to foster collaboration in health, research and policy between all sectors including civil society, NGOs and academia. Earlier this year, the WHO announced the launch of the WHO Academy app designed to support health workers and keep the general public informed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Watch this session |
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| Strengthening the Role of the European Union in Global Health
Germany, who holds the 2020 Presidency of the Council of the European Union until the end of 2020 when it passes to Portugal, has announced that global health will be a priority during its term, in cooperation with its trio-partners Portugal and Slovenia. This presents a significant opportunity to help identify interventions in areas like development, health, research and the environment that all EU members can use to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 3. |
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| MASCC SURVEY: IMPLEMENTATION OF EXERCISE GUIDELINES IN CANCER CARE |
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| An international team of researchers from the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC) is investigating how oncology health professionals engage in exercise counselling, advice and referral, and what their current strategies and barriers are to discussing exercise with patients with cancer. The research team is looking for practicing clinicians and health care professionals involved in the care of patients with cancer to share their views in a 10-minute online survey. This project has been approved by the University of South Australia’s Human Research Ethics Committee. If you are interested in participating, please follow the link below to the full information statement and online survey.
Participate in the survey |
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| ICN CODE OF ETHICS – TAKE PART IN THE CONSULTATION |
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| The International Council of Nurses (ICN) has launched a consultation on the revision of its ICN Code of Ethics for Nurses. Given the challenges facing nurses today, including technology, social justice and changing models of care, ICN’s newly revised and refreshed Code of Ethics will respond to the new realities of healthcare and nursing. The deadline for the submission of comments is 22 November 2020, after which the feedback will be analysed and presented in a report to the ICN Board for further consideration. The newly revised ICN Code of Ethics for Nurses will be launched in 2021. Find out more |
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EJON: A GOOD RESEARCH READ – FREE!
* FEATURING RECAN PHASE 2 PAPER * |
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| Don’t miss the latest issue of EJON: The European Journal of Oncology Nursing is an international journal which publishes research of direct relevance to patient care, nurse education, management and policy development. In the December issue, you can read the qualitative paper of RECaN phase 2 entitled: The experiences of cancer nurses working in four European countries: A qualitative study. Highlights: Increasingly high nursing workloads are evident in Europe alongside workforce shortages. Major changes taking place in the treatment of cancer require more individualised and targeted treatment approaches. In some countries, cancer nurses adopt advanced roles that include prescribing, treatment co-ordination and clinical procedures. Comparative qualitative insights are provided concerning cancer nursing in Estonia, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Despite common European Union Directives disparities exist in the availability of cancer nursing education and working across EU countries. As an EONS member you can read it free
Sign up to read the journal free |
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PRECISION MEDICINE IN ACTION
PRE-REGISTER NOW! |
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THE ECONOMIST WORLD CANCER SERIES:
EUROPE VIRTUAL WEEK 9 TO 13 NOVEMBER |
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| EONS’ President-elect Johan de Munter will be speaking at this online event on Nursing Challenges Across Europe. The five day onlinemeeting was originally planned to take place in Brussels, and includes a series of other high level speakers from the European institutions, industry and civil society.
Find out more |
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| EUROPEAN CANCER SUMMIT 2020 |
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| The virtual European Cancer Summit 2020 on 18 & 19 November will bring together leading oncology experts, patient advocates, politicians and policy-makers to discuss the main issues impacting cancer policy, for the benefit of cancer patients, healthcare professionals and all people across Europe. Find out more and register |
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| IMMUNOTHERAPY – ONLINE LECTURE |
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| Tuesday, 17 November 2020 at 10.00 CET
With a unique European focus on cancer research and treatment emerging, the aim of this annual lecture – Cancer & Immunotherapy: greatest challenges and novel therapies inspiring European citizens! – is how we can harness this radical treatment to better manage and eradicate cancer. An interactive debate, with a high-profile list of speakers, will examine progress and new frontiers in immunotherapy research, and how we might translate this work into tangible outcomes for patients.
Find out more |
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VIRTUAL ROYAL MARSDEN STUDY DAYS
AND CONFERENCES |
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| Don’t miss the ongoing Royal Marsden Study Days and Conferences – all events are now virtual. There’s ‘Nutrition and cancer myths’ on 12November and a ‘Gynaecological cancer study day’ on the 16th. On 19-20 November, you can attend the virtual 13th Annual Opioid, Cannabinoid, Gabapentinoid Conference. Find out more |
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