The 4th European Biosafety Summit will be held at the Polish Parliament in Warsaw.
Following the success of previous Summits held in Madrid, Dublin and London, this year’s summit will be held approximately 6 months after the deadline for Member States to transpose and implement the EU Council Directive on prevention of sharps injuries in the hospital and healthcare sector (2010/32/EU).
The timing of the Summit will provide the perfect opportunity to provide an update on the transposition and implementation of the Directive and the practical steps that employers and workers are taking to comply with it, as well as challenges being faced in the Member States. The European Federation of Nurses Associations will present the results of a questionnaire on practical implementation in the workplace in the various Member States and there will also be a presentation analysing the legal transposition of the Directive by Member States.
Most attendees of the Summit will have worked for many years to help achieve legislative requirements. We now need to ensure that the Directive is effectively applied so that all the workers in Europe finally receive the protection that they deserve.
The European Biosafety Network was established in 2010 as a virtual network of national and European professional institutions, representative associations, unions and other interested organisations. It is committed to the elimination of sharps injuries throughout the EU to improve the safety of patients and healthcare and non-healthcare workers. The majority of injuries have been proven to be avoidable with the implementation of effective education and training of workers, the promotion of best and safer practices and the use of safety engineered medical technologies.
