Florence Network

The Florence Network is a cross-nation European co-operation of nursing and midwifery departments from 18 different countries. It includes a total of 38 institutions across Europe. It focuses on international cooperation over educational and scientific issues, with the aim to develop and increase the quality of higher education in nursing, midwifery and health care. In this way the organization works to improve the image of the profession and to raise the profile of nursing and midwifery within Europe.

Primary goals
The Florence Network's stated goals are principally concerned with European nursing and midwifery. They include organising student and lecturer exchange between network members, improving curriculum quality and facilitating research collaboration.

It is hoped that the network will help with identified issues in nursing, such as an aging workforce, nursing shortages in higher-income EU countries, workplace dissatisfaction in lower-income countries, and a need for more culturally sensitive healthcare.

Member Countries
Institutions join the network by invitation only, but do not pay membership fees. As of 2019, forty higher education institutions (HEIs) from the following European nations are members of the network:


 * Belgium
 * Czech Republic
 * Denmark
 * England
 * Finland
 * Germany
 * Greece
 * Italy
 * Latvia
 * Netherlands
 * Norway
 * Portugal
 * Scotland
 * Slovakia
 * Slovenia
 * Spain
 * Sweden
 * Switzerland
 * Turkey

Annual meeting
Every year one of the partners - institutions of higher education (Universities of applied Sciences) is the host institution for the annual meeting.


 * 1995   Start of Florence Network - Groningen - Netherlands
 * 1996   Copenhagen, Oslo,
 * 1997   Stockholm,  Aalst, Belgium
 * 1998   Bremen, Germany
 * 1999   Rovaniemi, Finland
 * 2000   Prague, Czech Republic
 * 2001   Lahti, Finland
 * 2002   Edinburgh, Scotland
 * 2003   Porsgrunn, Norway
 * 2004   Udine, Italy
 * 2005   Leuven, Belgium
 * 2006   Napier University, Edinburgh, Scotland
 * 2007   Halmstad University, Varberg, Sweden
 * 2008   Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
 * 2009   The Hague University, The Hague, Netherlands
 * 2010   Ege University, Izmir, Turkey
 * 2011   ESEL, Lisbon, Portugal
 * 2012   Malmö University, Sweden
 * 2013   Hanzehogeschool, Groningen / NHL, Leeuwarden, Netherlands
 * 2014   TurgutOzal University, Ankara, Turkey
 * 2015   Metropolitan University College, Copenhagen /University College Zealand, Roskilde, Denmark
 * 2016   University of Verona & Trento Campus, Italy
 * 2017   Bern UAS, Zurich UAS & St. Gallen UAS, Bern & Winterthur, Switzerland
 * 2018   Odisee, Belgium
 * 2019   Coventry, England