Nurses Group
Nursing Research Committee
Nursing Scientific Committee
Nursing Paediatric Committee
Nursing Global Education Committee
By Hilda Mekelenkamp, EBMT Nurses Group President
On International Nurses Day 2026, we celebrate the 62nd anniversary of a profession that remains fundamental to health systems worldwide. The IND 2026 theme, "Our Nurses. Our Future. Empowered Nurses Save Lives", resonates strongly with the EBMT Community and with nurses working in haematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) and cellular therapy.
In today’s healthcare climate, nurses are at the heart of patient care, improving and saving lives every day. Their impact, however, is greatest when they are truly empowered to use their expertise fully. At a time when health systems across the world are under growing pressure, such empowerment is not a luxury but a necessity, reinforcing the central role of nursing in more resilient health systems.
Nowhere is this more visible than in HCT and cell therapy. This highly complex and rapidly evolving field demands advanced clinical judgement, close interdisciplinary collaboration and sustained therapeutic relationships with patients and families across long and uncertain care trajectories. The theme of the 52nd Annual Meeting of the EBMT, "Advancing the Art of Patient Care", speaks directly to this reality. Nursing care is an art because it brings together scientific knowledge, skilled judgement, emotional sensitivity, interpretation and ethical imagination to support healing in moments of profound vulnerability. In transplantation and cellular therapy, advancing this art is essential for patient safety, quality of care, person centred care, meaningful patient experience and optimal outcomes.
This understanding was echoed during the Nurses Group Opening Session at EBMT 2026 Annual Meeting in Madrid, where keynote speaker Adelaida Zabalegui highlighted the recently renewed definition of nursing: “Nursing’s practice is underpinned by a unique combination of science-based disciplinary knowledge, technical capability, ethical standards and therapeutic relationships. Nursing is committed to compassion, social justice and a better future for humanity.”
This definition closely reflects the daily reality of nurses in HCT and cell therapy. Often at the frontline of crises, complications and transitions of care, nurses translate complex medical decisions into meaningful conversations, support shared decision-making and provide continuity in highly technical environments.
Empowerment, therefore, must go beyond recognition alone. It demands investment in education, research and leadership pathways, as well as genuinely interdisciplinary teamwork where every voice is equally valued. It requires protected time and space for professional development, including mentoring, coaching, peer support and reflection.
Finally, nurses themselves must step into greater visibility, leading their own narrative and acting as agents of change within the healthcare system, as Hildegart González mentioned in her keynote lecture during the Nurses Group Opening Session in Madrid. Empowered nurses strengthen teams and organisations and above all, improve patient experiences and save lives.
On this International Nurses Day, let us reaffirm our commitment to Our Nurses. Our Future. By empowering nurses within the EBMT Community, we invest in safer, more humane and more sustainable transplantation and cellular therapy care.
#IND2026 #OurNursesOurFuture
Watch the interview with Thomas Jézéquel and Julia Ruiz-Pato who discuss how nursing blends science and the “art” of patient care in HCT and cell therapy.