EANS Summer Conference 2026
“Nursing Science Shaping Policy and Practice for Healthcare Systems in Challenging Times”, 8–9 July 2026
We are living in a time of crisis – facing climate change, wars and conflicts, pandemics, workforce shortages, and increasing financial pressures on healthcare.
Against this backdrop, the EANS Summer Conference 2026 brought together nurse scientists, educators, clinical leaders, policymakers, doctoral students, and colleagues from related health and social sciences to explore the role of nursing science in shaping resilient and agile health systems.
Throughout the conference, participants exchanged knowledge, shared experiences, and discussed innovative strategies to address current and future challenges in healthcare. The inspiring discussions and interdisciplinary collaboration highlighted the vital contribution of nursing science to evidence-informed practice, education, leadership, and health policy across Europe.
The conference demonstrated how crises can act as catalysts for innovation, adaptation, and sustainable change. Clinical, political, and scientific perspectives came together to foster meaningful dialogue, strengthen collaboration across disciplines, and reinforce the role of nursing science in shaping future healthcare systems.
The programme featured internationally renowned keynote speakers, interactive workshops, oral presentations, poster walks, and a lively debate. Together, these sessions created valuable opportunities for learning, networking, and exchanging ideas, leaving participants with fresh perspectives and new collaborations for the future.
Keynote Speaker
EANS: making a difference to health care. Past, present and future.
Prof. Ingalill Rahm Hallberg
Affiliated with the university, Senior Professor, Principal investigator, LUCC: Lund University Cancer Centre
Ingalill established and led the Swedish Institute for Health Sciences. She served as Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Medicine from 2000 to 2005 and as Deputy and Acting Vice-Chancellor from 2009 until spring 2012. She is joint editor of the book 'Complex Interventions in Health'. In addition, Ingalill is a former President of the European Academy of Nursing Science, a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, and an honorary member of the Swedish Medical Society. She has supervised and co-supervised a large number of PhD students in an international research environment, with a strong focus on ageing, functional capacity, quality of life, and the care needs of older populations.
Prof. David A Richards
Departement of Health and Caring science, Western Norway University of Applied Science
David Richards is an experienced nurse and health services researcher. He is author of more than 290 peer reviewed and professional journal articles, books and book chapters. He is joint editor of the book 'Complex Interventions in Health', and has obtained more than £14m in external research funding during his career. David is an emeritus Senior Investigator in the UK’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Faculty. He has been at the forefront of national and international efforts to improve access to treatment, leading the development of the low-intensity treatment methods.
Strengthening Nursing Science: An imperative for resilient health systems
Margrieta Langins
Margrieta is the nursing and midwifery policy advisor to the WHO Regional Office for Europe. She is a Latvian born, Canadian trained nurse. Over the course of her career Margrieta has worked in various settings in, working in rural health, delivering services to the homeless and working several years as a pediatric nurse. She is a former fellow at the International Foundation for Integrated Care in Oxford and has more than 15 years of international experience. Her work at the WHO Regional Office for Europe has involved working at the crossroads between health and care workforce issues, long-term care service models, and primary health care.
From Nursing Science to Health System Reform: Implementing the Programme of Research on Safe Nurse Staffing and Skill Mix
Prof. Jonathan Drennan
University College Dublin, School of Nursing Midwifery and Health Systems, Health Sciences Centre Belfield Dublin 4
Jonathan is a full Professor of Nursing at University College Dublin, with an extensive academic and clinical career spanning Ireland and the United Kingdom. He has previously held senior leadership roles as Chair of Nursing and Health Services Research at University College Cork and Professor of Healthcare Research at the University of Southampton, alongside a broad clinical background. His research expertise covers health services and workforce research, ageing, psychometrics, research methods, and the evaluation of health and education initiatives. He has led and contributed to numerous nationally and European funded projects, works closely with leading international academic institutions, and serves in senior editorial and advisory roles that shape nursing and health services research.
Wednesday 08.07.2026
| 08.00 - 09.00 | Registration in entrance lobby |
| 09.00 - 09.15 | Welcome Tove Aminda Hanssen, Chair of EANS Scientific Committee Heidrun Gattinger, Chair of EANS Summer School Conference |
| 09.15 - 10.00 | Keynote 1 EANS: making a difference to health care. Past, present and future. David Richards & Ingalill Rahm Hallberg |
| 10.15 - 11.15 | Oral Presentations – Tracks 1–4 1 Digital Health, Artificial Intelligence, and Data-Driven Nursing 2 Nursing Workforce, Leadership & Retention 3 Implementation and Care Innovation 4 Methods, Measurement & Theory Development |
| 11.15 - 11.45 | Coffee break |
| 11.45 - 12.45 | Oral Presentations – Tracks 5–8 5 Nursing Education & Advanced Roles 6 Crisis, Climate & Health Systems Change 7 Policy, Governance & Health Systems 8 Patient-Centered Care & Psychosocial Nursing |
| 12.45 - 13.45 | Lunch |
| 13.45 - 14.30 | Keynote 2 The Power of Nursing Science: Why it matters for building resilient health systems Margrieta Langins |
| 14.30 - 15.00 | Poster walk |
| 15.00 - 15.30 | Coffee break |
| 15.30 - 16.45 | Workshop 1 Workshop 2 Workshop 3 |
| 16.45 - 18.30 | Apéro & Networking |
Thursday 09.07.2026
| 08.00 - 09.00 | Registration in entrance lobby |
| 09.00 - 09.10 | Welcome Tove Aminda Hanssen, Chair of EANS Scientific Committee Heidrun Gattinger, Chair of EANS Summer School Conference |
| 09.10 - 10.00 | Keynote 3 From Nursing Science to Health System Reform: Implementing the Programme of Research on Safe Nurse Staffing and Skill Mix Jonathan Drennan |
| 10.00 - 10.45 | Poster presentation: 3rd year EANS students Come and see my poster in 60-seconds |
| 10.45 - 11.15 | Coffee break and poster tour with online voting |
| 11.25 - 12.25 | Oral Presentations – Tracks 1–4 1 Digital Health, Artificial Intelligence, and Data-Driven Nursing 2 Nursing Workforce, Leadership & Retention 3 Implementation and Care Innovation 4 Methods, Measurement & Theory Development |
| 12.25 - 13.25 | Lunch |
| 13.25 - 14.25 | Oral Presentations – Tracks 5–8 5 Nursing Education & Advanced Roles 6 Crisis, Climate & Health Systems Change 7 Policy, Governance & Health Systems 8 Patient-Centered Care & Psychosocial Nursing |
| 14.25 - 15.00 | Coffee break |
| 15.00 - 16.35 | Debate: 2nd year EANS students Chair of the Debate: Catherine McCabe |
| 16.40 - 17.00 | Thank you and Farewell Theo van Achterberg, President of the European Academy of Nursing Science (EANS) |
Abstracts Tracks Wednesday and Thursday
The full programme can be viewed via the app
The programme can be viewed via the app. https://eans-summit-sync.base44.app
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Partners / Sponsors
SAMW ASSM
Schweizerische Akademie
der Medizinischen Wissenschaften
Compliag AG, Zug
Projekt “moovly”
Organising Committee
Prof. Dr. Heidrun Gattinger, Prof. Dr. Manuel P. Stadtmann, Prof. Dr. Julian Hirt, Ilona Schmid – Institute of Health Sciences, OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences St Gallen
Prof. Dr. Michael Simon, Dr. Bastiaan Van Grootven – Institute of Nursing Science, University of Basel
Prof. Dr. Rahel Naef, Dr. Myrta Kohler – Institute for Implementation Science in Health Care, University of Zürich & Centre for Clinical Nursing Science, University Hospital Zurich