The Who Global Advisory Group on Nursing and Midwifery

document may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical or other – without the written permission of WHO. The views expressed in documents by named authors are solely the responsibility of those authors. • Strong nursing and midwifery services are vital for the world's health systems. • Health systems need to be fuelled by the best nursing and midwifery skills and an adequate number personnel to staff them. • Nursing and midwifery skill development and stewardship must be promoted with a focus on health service quality. • Policy-makers, when choosing options to scale up health systems, need to be aware of the contribution that nursing and midwifery services can make. • Best practice guidance and technical support must be further developed and require investment. • The strong link between ill health and poverty requires a dramatic scaling-up in health systems, and nurses and midwives are well placed to play a key role in this regard. • Nurses and midwives are pivotal to the sustained success of the new public–private partnerships for health that will assist in extending service coverage and improving health outcomes. Key issues that define the current context within which health systems, and consequently also nursing and midwifery, should be viewed: • The scaling up of health outcomes that bring significant benefits for the well-being of the worlds poorest people • The Global Fund for HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria • The Global Health Sector Strategy for Strengthening Health Sector Response to HIV/AIDS • The role of health in poverty alleviation, peace, security and broader development • Health Systems Performance Assessment – focus on outcomes Challenges that emerged during discussions included • The need to develop a strong evidence base regarding the effective use of nursing and midwifery services , as well as impact of workforce shortages, and address issues as a matter of urgency • The need to ensure a strong platform for advocacy regarding the contribution of, and challenges confronting , nursing and midwifery services • The need to develop strong nursing and midwifery leadership globally • The need for nurses and midwives to play a key role in reducing risk factors for disease and disability • The need to work together in an alliance with key partners, and members of the multidisciplinary health team, held together by common purpose In view of the urgency of …