Direct access without a doctor's prescription, right to prescribe, "nurse consultation": a decree, published Friday in the Official Journal, puts into practice the reform of the nursing profession, offering professionals an expanded and much more central role in the healthcare system, a small revolution for those concerned.
In application of the "nursing law" of June 27, 2025, "the decree specifies the areas of activity and competence of the state-certified nurse", "defines in particular the practice of nursing as well as the modalities of the nursing consultation" - for the first time -, indicates the decree of December 24 published Friday in the Official Journal.
In the world of healthcare, which is centered around the figure of the doctor, this is a paradigm shift. Nurses, who until now were paid based on a 20-year-old list of procedures that they could only perform with a prior prescription, will no longer be considered mere executors.
Nurses will now be able to "initiate" care within their area of activity, including nursing care "of a preventive, educational, curative, relational nature or intended for clinical monitoring".
They will therefore take "direct" care of patients within the framework of their "own role", the decree specifies.
They will be able to conduct a "nursing consultation", perform a clinical assessment (health evaluation, history, lifestyle habits), make a "nursing diagnosis", understood as the patient's specific "health needs" within their scope of practice, and "develop a personalized care plan".
They will take care of minor wounds or burns without prior prescription, and will monitor their progress.
The decree also gives them the long-demanded right to "prescribe health products and additional tests adapted to the clinical situation," although the list is restricted and specified by decree.
The text recognizes their ability to identify situations of mistreatment or psychological suffering, to provide "relational care, enabling psychological support" to patients, or to "design" and "conduct" a therapeutic education or prevention approach (falls, obesity, addictions, sexual health, vaccination).
He emphasizes their role in assessing and maintaining the autonomy of the elderly, and in the "prevention, assessment and relief" of pain and distress, particularly at the end of life.
Nurses will also be able to administer all mandatory vaccines from age 11 (except for immunocompromised individuals) without prior prescription, as well as those against influenza and Covid from age 5, and also carry out tests for certain sexually transmitted infections (HIV, hepatitis, chlamydia, etc.).
They will still be able to delegate certain tasks, the list of which will be set by decree, to nursing assistants or childcare assistants.
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