On April 19-20, Madrid will be hosting the European Conference “Mental Health and Well-Being in Older People – Making It Happen”. The third theme-based conference held within the framework of the European Mental Health and Well-Being Pact organized jointly by the European Commission and Spain’s Ministry of Health and Social Policy as part of the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. Participation will be by invitation

Registration is now open for the Technical Meeting: Multidisciplinary Cancer Care as a Model of Care Quality which will be held on May 27, 2010 in Ernest Lluch Hall at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy

Registration is now open for the V International Conference on Patient Safety (Madrid, June 3-4, 2010) through the Ministry of Health and Social Policy applet. Registration deadline: May 15, 2010. Registration is free and will be confirmed in strict order of request. Limited seating.

The announcement of the opening of the 2009 Awards to Quality in the Spanish National Health System will soon be published in Spain’s Official Gazette (BOE). In this edition, all studies must be submitted by June 15, 2010. Rules for participants

As part of the 2010 publishing schedule and within the scope of Spain’s European Union Presidency, the Health Information Institute has prepared the information publication Spain’s National Health System 2010, available in Spanish and English.

The National Health System Quality Agency is disseminating the document on the Day Hospital Unit: Standards and Recommendations concerning Healthcare Units/Standards and Recommendations. By post or via the Ministry of Health and Social Policy Website The objective of this guide, which is not of a regulatory nature, is to make criteria available to the administrations, public or private managers and healthcare professionals which will enable them to improve the safety, quality and care provision conditions of this type of units by dealing with key aspects, such as: patient safety and rights; the unit organization, management and physical setup; the material and human resources of which a unit must avail, as well as the level of healthcare provided by Day Hospital Units.

The 2008 Gender Violence Report is now available on the Ministry of Health and Social Policy Website

On March 31, 2010, the Work Meeting of the Citizen Instructor Networks in which the National Health System Quality Agency, the Andalusian Public Health School and the coordinator of the Zero Bacteriemia Project will be taking part to assess the Citizen Network’s role as an agent promoting the National Health System Patient Safety Strategy, will be held at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy.

On March 24, 2010, the meeting of the coordinating group for hand hygiene in the National Health System was held for working on indicators, reaching an agreement as to the requirements of the alcohol-based products and defining the activity which are going to be carried out on May 5th next on the occasion of Global “Save Lives: Clean Your Hands Day” promoted by the WHO.

On March 23, 2010, the meeting of the Spanish National Health System Mental Health Strategy monitoring and evaluation committee was held at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy to analyze the current status thereof and to plan the 2010 working schedule.

On March 23, 2010, The 9th Zero Baceriemia Project monitoring meeting was held for the purpose of knowing what advancements have been achieved at the national and Autonomous Community level and reaching an agreement regarding the strategies which will be further boosting this project over the months to come, with a view to its long-range continuity. This project, carried out in collaboration with the WHO and in which Spain is the demonstration country, is being carried out with the participation of all of the Autonomous Communities under the technical leadership of the Spanish Society of Intensive Medicine and Critical Care (SEMICYUC).

On March 22 last, the National Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy technical and institutional committees met at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy. More information

The Palliative Care Strategy Monitoring and Evaluation Committee held a meeting at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy on March 16, 2010. More information

The Health Information Institute, has compiled the mental health resources currently available through the regional health services, in the directory: Spain’s National Health System Mental Health Mechanisms (2009)

The Health Training Institute has prepared a directory: Spain’s National Health System Palliative Care Mechanismss (2009) in which one can locate the palliative care mechanisms currently available through the regional health systems, and has published the document Spain’s National Health Care Palliative Care Organization (2009) for the purpose of describing the organization of palliative care through the regional health services

[+ Highlights]

Las unidades de críticos lograron disminuir las nosocomiales en 2009 (Diario Medico.com, 25 de marzo de 2010

Healthcare Professionals believe the Anti-Smoking Law should be expanded upon while Spain holds the EU Presidency (Medicosypacientes.com, March 23, 2010)

Decisive Actions for Smoking Habit Control (Medicosypacientes.com, March 23, 2010)

Adverse events in health (Correo, March 22, 2010)

Spain to spearhead EU digital healthcare governance policy and strategy action (Ministry of Health and Social Policy. Press Office. March 18, 2010.)

Sant Joan Hospital established as the Latin American reference point in the field of patient safety (elperiodic.com, March 18, 2010)

The Ministry of Health and the Autonomous Communiteis agree to set a nationwide maximum waiting time for surgery (Ministry of Health and Social Policy. Press Office, March 18, 2010)

Internal Medicine: A Study on Patient Safety in Primary Care (vivirmejor.es, March 17, 2010)

Interview with Spanish National Health System Director, Dr. Javier Carnicero (medicosypacientes.com, March 9, 2010)

Castilla-La Mancha receives award for bolstering patient safety and enhancing care quality (La Cerca, March 9, 2010)

Hand hygiene in the healthcare services, theme of a University of Granada project (Teleprensa.es. Periódico Digital de Granada, March 5, 2010)

The new Abortion Law to enter into effect on July 5th next (Público.es, March 4, 2010)

Less than 20% of all physicians know that females are at higher risk than males of dying from a cardiovascular disease (Europa Press, March 3, 2010)

Hospital Infection is the Big Risk in Public Health (laopiniondemurcia.es, February 28,e 2010)

Osakidetza records approx. 170,000 "adverse events" for its patients and users(noticiasdegipuzkoa.com, February 26, 2010)

The hospitals in Jaen to offer giving birth standing or squatting (Ideal.es, February 21, 2010)

Nearly 25,000 patients die annually in the European Union due to resistance to the use of antibiotics (Blog Noticias Salud [Health News Blog], February 16, 2010)

[+ news]

• Joint Resolution of February 22, 2010 of the National Secretary for Research and the “Carlos III” Health Institute passed in approval of the 2010 announcement of the granting of aid to Health Strategy Action within the framework of the 2008-2011 National Scientific Research, Development and Technological Innovation Plan (Spanish Official Gazette (BOE), No.58, March 8, 2010)

• Course on preventing and providing care for gender violence for mental health teams , (“Carlos III” Health School, May 17-21, 2010). Registration deadline: April 30th

• European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies Venice Summer School, 2010 (San Servolo, Venice, July 25-31, 2010). Registration and information