Romania has taken a major step forward in strengthening the skills of its health workforce by successfully delivering 3 national e-learning courses under the country’s health sector management reform supported through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
Implemented by the Ministry of Health and the National Institute of Health Services Management (NIHSM), with support from WHO/Europe and the WHO Country Office in Romania, the initiative contributed to achieving an important milestone set by the European Commission as part of the Recovery and Resilience Facility: training over 5000 health professionals by the end of 2025.
This national scale-up builds on the earlier Training of Trainers effort that helped to lay the groundwork for delivering modern, standardized management training across the country.
Three courses, one goal: a stronger health system
The programme offered 3 national e-learning courses focused on practical skills that help health services to run better every day by building a more resilient, well-managed and accountable health system:
- Health Services Management – strengthening leadership and operational management, supporting better planning, organization and delivery of care;
- Human Resources Management – building skills to manage and support health teams, helping institutions to deploy staff more effectively, strengthen supervision and improve workforce performance; and
- Ethics and Integrity – reinforcing ethical decision-making and integrity standards, supporting transparent governance, accountability and trust in health services.
In total, over 9000 health-care professionals across Romania strengthened their competencies and professional capacity, with results far exceeding the national target.
A modern digital platform for nationwide access
The NIHSM in Romania serves as a key public institution responsible for postgraduate training, research and consultancy in public health and health services management, providing accreditation and organizing continuing professional development (CPD) programmes for health system staff.
The programme leveraged NIHSM’s updated national e-learning platform to deliver training content, assessments, final exams, certification and reporting in a standardized and efficient format. This approach enabled equitable access across all counties, including remote areas, while maintaining quality assurance and accreditation standards where applicable (including CPD points for medical professionals in selected courses).
A total of 28 trainers contributed to adapting and delivering content in a modern e-learning format, strengthening institutional capacity for future scale-up.
High satisfaction and practical value for participants
Participant feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with an impressive average satisfaction score of 9.1 out of 10. Learners praised the clarity and real-world relevance of the content, while also expressing excitement for future editions that may include even more hands-on case studies and interactive activities.
As the NIHSM Project Manager, Aurora Dragomirișteanu, stated, “This programme demonstrated that Romania can deliver high-quality standardized training at a national level through e-learning, while ensuring compliance with eligibility criteria, certification requirements and reporting standards.”
Reflecting the end-user perspective, one of the participants, Dr Mihai Ion, added, “The course was well-structured, practical and easy to follow online. What I learned can be applied immediately in day-to-day management and team coordination in my hospital.”
WHO support to ensure end-to-end coordination under time constraints
As the Ministry of Health and the NIHSM led the implementation of this ambitious training initiative, WHO/Europe, through the Country Office in Romania, provided dedicated support to help to ensure smooth, end-to-end coordination on a very tight timeline. WHO’s contribution included facilitating stakeholder engagement, offering technical guidance and providing external IT, communications and reporting support.
Beyond this specific project, WHO continues to work closely with national authorities to strengthen the effective implementation of the NRRP. Through evidence-based policy advice, capacity building for health institutions, and expert support for public health functions, health system resilience and emergency preparedness, WHO helps to ensure that Romania’s reforms are aligned with international standards and best practices.
By fostering cross-sectoral collaboration, supporting the integration of digital health solutions and advising on quality-of-care improvements and health workforce reforms, WHO/Europe’s technical assistance reinforces national efforts to translate NRRP commitments into tangible progress. This partnership helps the Government of Romania to drive lasting improvements in health outcomes, equity and system performance.
Strengthening Romania’s health workforce for the future
By combining national leadership, strengthened digital infrastructure and coordinated delivery support, Romania has demonstrated that it can provide high-quality training at a national level by helping to build stronger management, better workforce practices and a culture of ethics and integrity across the health system.