June 15, 2010 is the deadline for submitting studies to take part in the 2009 National Health System Quality Awards. Once again this year, the Ministry of Health and Social Policy will be awarding – with a total of 468,618 euros- those health care institutions and teams which are outstanding in carrying out projects of excellence aimed at improving the quality of the National Health System-related services. Legal basis. More information

The tables are accessible in Excel and pdf format for the historical series of indicators used in the preparation of the 2009 Health Indicators Report: Evolution of the Health Condition Indicators in Spain and Their Magnitude Within the European Union Context

The 2009 Health Care Barometer data has been presented. The micro-data and technical documentation are also available.

The abstracts of the 2008 National Health System Annual Report in English and in Spanish and the Complete report in English are now available on the Ministry of Health and Social Policy website.

The Autonomous Community Regulations document, an annex to the 2008 National Health System Annual Report is now available on the Ministry of Health and Social Policy Website

The Abstract and Findings of the 2010 Spanish Health System Analysis are now available on the Ministry of Health and Social Policy Website. This document, presented on May 10th last at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy, comprises part of the Health Systems in Transition (HiTS) series prepared by the European Health Systems and Policies Monitoring System devoted to the analysis of the health systems in the European Region of the WHO. The full version will be published in brief

The National Health System Quality Agency will soon be sending out the Zero Bacteremia Project video by mail to the ICUs participating in this project. This instructional video provides a step-by-step description of the measures necessary for safely inserting central venous catheters, as well as the most useful tools for developing a safety culture in ICUs. This video can be found on the Ministry of Health and Social Policy website

The Guide for Incorporating the Gender Perspective into Health Research is available on the Ministry of Health and Social Policy Website. This guide is the result of a research project commissioned to the Andalusian Public Health School by the Women’s Health Monitoring System 

The National Health System Quality Agency is disseminating the following standards and recommendations: Nursing Unit in Polyvalent Acute Patient Hospitalization, Surgical Block and Multiple-Disorder Patient Units

On May 27th last, the Technical Meeting Multi-disciplinary Cancer Care as a Model of Care Quality was held at in the Ernest Lluch Conference Hall at the Ministry of Health and Social Policy

On May 21st last, a Scientific Meeting was held on Nursing Staff and Their Impact on Patient Safety: Toward A Better Forecast of Human Resources in Nursing at the “Ernest Lluch” Conference Hall of the “Carlos III” Health Institute operating under the Ministry of Science and Innovation on the occasion of the meeting of the stakeholders taking part in the Rn4Cast (Nurse Forecasting in Europe) Project

On May 5, 2010, World Hand Hygiene Day was held, having been called by the World Health Organization (WHO) within the framework of its Patient Safety Program. This commemoration was aimed at achieve the active involvement of the largest number possible of health care centers and organization in all countries for promoting hand hygiene, a simple measure yet of prime importance for reducing health care-related infections

Summary and conclusions of the III Patient Safety in Primary Care Meeting held on April 27th last at the Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid

[+ highlights]

The Signo Foundation has awarded the National Health System Quality Agency the 2010 Barea Award in the “Multi-Entity Projects” category to the study Health Care Unit Standards and Recommendations. The Emergence of a New Health Care Model

Health Administration Stresses the Importance of Good Hand Hygiene at Health Care Centers To Heighten Patient Safety (Ministry of Health and Social Policy. Press Office, May 4, 1010)

National Health System Activites on the Occasion of World Hand Hygiene Day on May 5, 2010 (Patient Safety Website)

[+ news]

• Through the coordination action of the Marqués de Valdecilla Training and Research Institute (IFIMAV) and the Health Department Public Health Administration, the Marqués de Valdecilla Foundation is announcing a call for applications for grants for health and gender-related research projects in Cantabria. The deadline for filing applications and all other required documentation is 2:00 p.m. on June 3, 2010. Rules

• Announcement of the 2010 call for application for grants from several Subprograms of the National Program for R+D Internationalization as part of the 2008-2011 National Plan. Rules

• The Joint AAL – Ambient Assisted Living Program has announced the third opening on April 23rd. This is a research grant program for projects based on the development of innovative ICT technologies (products, services and systems) for finding solutions which will improve the lives of older people with an industrial application focus. This call for applications revolves around aspects of the specific use of ICTs for developing the independence and involvement of older people in what is known as the “Help Yourself Society”.  The deadline is 5:00 p.m. on July 30th. More information