The training for hospital nurses, pediatric nurses, and nurses for the elderly will be integrated by a new nursing profession law that was adpopted in July 2017. The law will combine the three existing vocational nursing programs into one standardized two year program, with nurses able to choose whether they will continue to additional general education or specialize in elderly or pediatric nursing. The act aims to reform nursing education in order to standardize the profession of nursing in Germany, and prepare nurses for transferring between positions or for promotional opportunities.
The law is also meant to attract more nurses to the field of elderly care by abolishing the school fee for geriatric nursing school. The first year of THE new training PROGRAM will start on 1 January 2020 to give nursing schools adequate time to prepare for the changes.