Faced with the many challenges facing our healthcare system and amid profound structural changes in nursing education and the nursing profession, nursing students have always been a source of innovative ideas. The National Federation of Nursing Students (Fnesi) thus contributes to discussions on the healthcare system, the modernization of the profession, and, more broadly, societal issues. It offers a critical yet constructive analysis of the expectations and challenges that lie ahead.
The major reform of the nursing profession in recent years marks a historic milestone for the profession. It is part of a growing recognition of the central role played by nurses. Since 2023, government authorities have undertaken a comprehensive overhaul of the profession, its competencies, and its training. This reform introduces greater legal flexibility and ensures that professional practices are regularly updated. Finally, it is bringing about concrete changes to nursing practice, notably through direct access to care and greater autonomy for nurses.
The reform of nursing education marks a turning point for the profession by defining nursing practice around five areas of competence centered on clinical autonomy, reasoning, and nursing consultation. It establishes a curriculum based on real-world scenarios, integrating scientific knowledge, reflective practice, and evidence-based nursing to inform decision-making at the patient's bedside. At the heart of the new framework, nurses become clinical decision-makers and care pathway leaders, working in interprofessional collaboration, within the context of the healthcare system's strategic transformation.
The 2026 nursing degree reform strengthens the integration of research and evidence-based practice, requiring students to have greater scientific literacy. However, a gap persists between adherence to these principles and their actual implementation, due to organizational and pedagogical barriers. Creating environments that foster a culture of scientific inquiry is therefore essential for the reform to yield tangible results.
The overhaul of the nursing profession in France is part of a broader movement toward profound transformation of contemporary health care systems. Law No. 2025-581 of June 27, 2025, supplemented by its implementing regulations, goes beyond simply expanding nursing competencies: it reconfigures the framework for practice and the scope of professional activities. This evolution is part of a broader initiative that includes reforming the first cycle of initial training and developing advanced practice pathways.
The transformation of the French healthcare system is accompanied by a gradual redefinition of the roles of healthcare professionals, in response to growing needs for access to, coordination of, and efficiency in care. In this context, the increased recognition of nursing competencies serves as a major driver of adaptation. Recent changes to the legislative framework - notably through Law No. 2025-581 of June 27, 2025, on the nursing profession - reflect this trend by formalizing practices already well-established in the field. It calls for a rethinking of the nurse's role - not merely as a provider of care, but as a full-fledged clinical professional capable of assessing, guiding, and supporting patients through increasingly complex care pathways.
In residential care facilities for dependent older adults, continuity of care can be compromised, particularly due to a shortage of nursing staff. Insights from the field prompt us to examine organizational limitations and their consequences for residents, caregivers, and families. They emphasize the need to put care back at the center of priorities in order to ensure high-quality support that respects each individual's needs.
Law No. 2025-581 of June 27, 2025, reformed the nursing profession, making a comprehensive overhaul of initial training essential. The decree of February 20, 2026, reflects this change by redefining the competency and training standards. These new standards thus support more autonomous practice in various settings, including primary care.
Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) remain common following general anesthesia. Circadian rhythms may influence these outcomes. A prospective, single-center study included 501 adults who underwent surgery under general anesthesia. The low incidence of PONV did not allow for the identification of a link between its occurrence and the time of admission. These findings, although exploratory, suggest that later admissions may be associated with less anxiety in patients, which could also have an indirect effect on PONV.
In France, the new training framework for the state nursing degree will take effect at the start of the 2026 academic year, in part to align with the European framework. This structural change is raising questions among nursing education administrators and professionals. The training program, which has been partially university-based since 2009, is demanding yet remains professionally oriented. While this reform aims to address numerous challenges, it also raises significant concerns. It is worthwhile to compare different European training systems in order to learn from the practices of our neighbors.
