NCW at Patients' Rights Charter presentation

In Europe, there is an ongoing discussion on patients that has created greater awareness on the need to establish a clear framework of common principles and standards for the protection of patients' rights.

The European Commission has opened a consultation process on health services and the new health strategy. In the spirit of contributing to the European debate on health and more specifically patients' rights, a European Patients' Rights Day was held at the European Parliament on March 29. The National Council of Women was represented by Christine Spiteri-Paris.

During the conference the final results of this monitoring process and a citizens' report on patients' rights were discussed and presented in the presence of civic organisations from some 30 European countries, international organisations, EU institutions and national government, the private sector, journalists and academics.

The conference aimed at establishing the European Patients' Rights Day as an annual event. Apart from acting as a symbolic event and enforcing the European Patients' Rights Charter, such a day reassures one of the top-of-the-list concerns of European citizens, which is their health.

It also acts as a practical, hands-on example of how being a member of the EU can be of benefit to each one of us. It is envisaged that the first Patients' Rights Day is to be celebrated in 2008.

A manifesto on patients' rights in Europe for the inclusion of a common Charter of Patients' rights in the future community framework was also presented during the conference.