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Here are two prime categories of nurse in Belgium: the Bachelor nurse and the certificate nurse.
The certificate nurse undertakes practical nurse training in the fourth grade
of secondary school after completing the normal three grades (3x2 years) secondary school studies. The training is largely based on practice and apprenticeship. This category of nurse was being considered for phasing out, but change has been rejected. This type of nurse is not considered as a specialist nurse (in terms of title) but may in their second and third years of training follow a "hospital" (i.e. general nurse) route or train as a "psychiatric" nurse (infirmier en santé mentale / verpleegkunde in de geestelijke gezondheidszorg) or train as a "geriatric nurse" (verpleegkunde in de geriatrie).
The Bachelor nurse now varies between the two main Belgian communities and is described more fully below. A common feature is that their education is at a higher level (higher technical education) and admission criteria are similar to that used for entry into university.
The split into these two main types of nurse is not reflected in the rules defining the scope of activity of nursing which makes no distinctions between types of nurse and the functions that they can perform. All nurses can undertake specialized and complementary training as:- Cancer; Imaging and radiotherapy; Operating theatre; palliative care; endoscopy; dialysis; radiotherapy; or health education nurses.
As regards "Specialist nurses", the formal professional titles were only created in 1994 (details below), and are now at post-basic level. However prior to the 1994 change in rules there was training in a series of specialist areas (for example in pediatric nurse, psychiatric nurse, social nurse). Some of the schools, especially in Flanders allowed direct entry into this type of course. As there was no rule against using a specialist title, nurses could do so. When the new (1994) rule change is fully implemented such nurses with appropriate experience are likely to have their acquired rights recognized. It is not known when these rules will be introduced.
The Belgian Federal law sets out the titles of nurse specialists in Belgium:
- Pediatric nurse (infirmier gradué en pédiatrie / Bachelor in de verpleegkunde, optie pediatrie)
- Mental health and psychiatry (infirmier gradué en santé mentale
/ bachelor in de verpleegkunde, optie psychiatrie)
- Public Health (infirmier gradué en santé communautaire /Bachelor in de verpleegkunde, optie sociale gezondheidszorg)
- Intensive care and emergency care (infirmier gradué en soins intensifs et
d'urgence / Bachelor in de verpleegkunde in intensieve zorg en spoedgevallenzorg)
- Geriatric nursing (infirmier gradué en gériatries / bachelor in de verpleegkunde, optie geriatrie)
The nursing specialties above are set out in the Belgian Federal Law.
After getting a degree of Bachelor in Nursing: the nurses can obtain a degree of Bachelor after Bachelor in Nursing (BANABA) in intensive care and emergency, oncology, neonatology, etc.
And finally there is also a Master of Sciences in Nursing, where you can get an academically degree. Before you enter the master education, you have to follow 60ECTS of a kind of bridge course with the special focus on science research. Afterwards you have to follow 60 ECTS of Master. Finally you can get a doctoral degree.
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