Paediatric oncology nurses are crucial members of these professionals, with a unique role within the clinical teams and across all stages of disease from diagnosis to treatment and long-term follow-up. They contribute to paediatric oncology care through a broad range of specific tasks and responsibilities providing direct care, assisting other professionals, and supporting patients and their families.
At a European level, paediatric oncology nursing faces many challenges. For instance, the lack of specific national paediatric oncology nursing societies, the country-to-country differences in academic background and access to nurse education or training, the different organization of staffing levels, the different regulations and responsibilities and scope of nursing practice or even the lack of resources in some instances.
It is at the core of the SIOPE Nursing Working Group to address such differences in order to achieve equal standards of childhood cancer care across European countries.
The SIOPE Nursing Working Group consist of nurses across European countries dedicated to the care of children affected with cancer and their families/caregivers, willing to work with the highest quality standards and linked with SIOPE's mission in order to ensure the best possible care and outcome for all children and adolescents with cancer in Europe through a multidisciplinary and pan-European perspective.
· Who are we?
The SIOPE Nursing Working Group is a formal group within SIOP Europe, which has been officially launched during the 3rd Annual Meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Oncology in March 2022.
The SIOPE Nursing Working Group will focus on the promotion of the highest standards in paediatric care with a particular emphasis on clinical trials, clinical research, and education to enhance the evidence-based practice amongst paediatric haematology and oncology nurses across the SIOPE affiliated countries.
More specifically, the SIOPE Nursing Working Group will
- facilitate collaboration, communication, and exchange between nurses across Europe;
- promote continued education tailored to paediatric oncology nurses’ specific needs (i.e. organization of specific training modules);
- foster advanced and evidence-based nursing practice;
- support nursing research (i.e. revision of guidelines, systematic reviews);
- promote education and dissemination of evidence-based nursing practice in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs).
The SIOPE Nursing Working Group may apply to EU, charity, other source funding for project work as sole applicant or in partnership with other SIOPE working groups, nursing groups or partner organizations.
Current Steering Committee Members:
Andrea Zibaldo, Santobono - Pausilipon Children's Hospital, Naples, Italy; Chair
Eugenia Trigoso, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico LA FE, Valencia, Spain; Past Chair
Maria Avilés Martínez, Hospital Nino Jesus, Madrid, Spain; Palliative Care subgroup representative
Mary Foo-Caballero, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, England; Nutrition subgroup representative
Julia Ruiz Pato, Hospital Nino Jesus, Madrid, Spain;
Renske Karens van Vliet, Princess Máxima Center, Utrecht, Netherlands;
Andrea Mastria, University-Hospital of Padova, Italy; Research subgroup representative
Interested in Joining the Working Group?
Nurses whose activity is relevant to the care of children with cancer and their families may apply for membership to the SIOP Europe Nursing Working Group.
Please complete the application form . You will be asked to provide your contact details, upload a short CV and describe your interest in joining the Working Group.
For further information, please contact Chiara Michi: chiara.michi@siope.eu
The applications will be evaluated by the Steering Committee.