WHO European strategy for nursing and midwifery education for health for all: a nursing comment.

The WHO European Strategy for Nursing and Midwifery Education included a commitment to provide a series of tools to support those Member States that had requested assistance in implementing the Strategy. This Guidance document represents key elements of that support. Included in the pack (Sections 1–8) are two prototype curricula (one for nursing and one for midwifery); key elements of curriculum design for practice-based professions, including competency-based education and training; teaching, learning and assessment strategies consistent with the principles of adult education; guidance on quality control and educational evaluation; criteria for the preparation of nurse and midwife teachers and mentors; criteria for the accreditation of schools of nursing and/or midwifery; and criteria for national and international accreditation of certificated and experiential learning. Section 9 is a detailed research tool for use by each Member State in assessing its baseline position in relation to the fundamental principles of initial education for nurses and midwives and their subsequent annual progress towards implementation of the strategy. Member States are asked to complete this tool (questionnaire) annually. The results will be analysed and will form part of a longitudinal research study on nursing and midwifery education in Europe over a ten-year period. A list of key references and a glossary are included.