Background
Since the International University of Monaco does not have a medical faculty, health professionals, apart from nurses, are trained and graduate abroad (master’s degree). Nurses obtain their qualifications through the Nursing Education Institute of Monaco, which has a similar programme to that offered in France. The Institute also trains nursing assistants. In addition, the College of Continuing Medical Education provides teaching credits, which are valid in the European Union (European Credits Transfer System). Postgraduate training in Monaco is currently too limited to influence health-system innovation and performance.
Delivery
In Monaco, most health professionals1, except for nurses, opt to pursue their postgraduate degrees in France given its geographical proximity and the convenience of a common language. Monaco has a specialized commission, which evaluates/recognizes qualifications gained in European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) countries. Nursing training in Monaco is very similar to that provided in France and results in the same diploma. Courses provided by the College of Continuing Medical Education of Monaco are accessible to all interested health professionals.
At present, the local specificities of Monaco (small size and population) do not allow for local postgraduate training. Close links with France make it easy for health professionals in Monaco to access training there. This is particularly true of state-certified nurses who can take specialization courses in surgery or anaesthesia in French medical schools. This practice is already widely implemented.
Initiatives
Monaco’s only public hospital organizes internal selection processes each year, according to which state-qualified nurses are chosen to follow specialization courses (in surgery or anaesthesia), which are financed by their employers.
This internal promotion initiative has the advantage not only of enhancing staff qualifications, but also promoting employees professionally, boosting both their motivation and performance.
Postgraduate training in Monaco
Data
Monaco has a complete set of data related to the hiring of staff by health-care institutions (type of diploma, complementary diplomas), but the challenge lies in regularly updating these data.
Role of postgraduate training in reducing brain drain
The presence of a nursing school in Monaco mitigates brain drain by allowing young nationals to study at home rather than, for example, in France as is the case for other medical or paramedical professionals in the country. It also results in graduates who are well integrated into local life and the local economic fabric. In the case of those who do go abroad, given the advantages associated with living in Monaco, most of them return to work in the country on completion of their studies.
Challenges and enablers
There are no special challenges related to postgraduate training in so far as – given the small size of the country and the population – the creation of a medical faculty in Monaco is not an option.
According to agreements with France, nursing training undertaken in Monaco is automatically recognized and validated in France. This leads in turn to recognition of the resulting qualifications in the EU (of which Monaco is not a member).
Cross-country collaboration
In the absence of a medical faculty in Monaco, collaboration with other countries is essential to ensure the delivery of postgraduate training for health professionals. Close links with France allow local health professionals to access relevant training there without major difficulties.
1 physicians, dentists, psychologists, osteopathic practitioners and all paramedics (except for nurses).
© World Health Organization 2020. Some rights reserved. This work is available under the CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO license.
WHO/EURO-2020-1307-41057-55737
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