The Brazilian Network of Nursing Virtual Health Library (VHL), represented by over 30 professionals from 13 universities, as well as the Associação Brasileira de Enfermagem (ABEn – Brazilian Nursing Association), the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES – Coordination of Improvement of Higher Level Personnel) and BIREME/PAHO/WHO, met this year on May 2-4 at the premises of BIREME in order to participate of the 16^th edition of the Brazil Nursing VHL Advisory Committee Meeting. The event was coordinated by the Escola de Enfermagem of Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (EEUFMG).

The main objective of the meeting was to define the work plan for 2018-2020, which was developed through working groups divided into the following topics:

• Criteria for Selection and Permanence of Nursing Journals on BDENF and LILACS databases;
• REV@ENF Portal and SciELO Blog;
• Thematic Areas;
• Second Formative Opinion (SOF);
• Evidence-Based Nursing;
• International Committee for the Evaluation of the Journals of Nursing VHL;
• Terminology;
• Nursing Websites (LIS);
• Social Networks;
• Bibliographic Control – BDENF/LILACS;
• PhD Thesis and Master’s Dissertations;
• Interoperability of databases with BDENF;
• Strategies to strengthen and integrate the national bodies of the Nursing VHL; and
• Nursing VHL Portal.

The consolidation and validation of the referrals of each group resulted in a plan of action up to 2020, with a distribution of responsibilities among the members of the Committee.

The Nursing VHL was born with a national approach and over the years has transformed itself into an international project, expanding the scope of its sources of information and the conformation of its committee. In the framework of this expansion, it was approved by this committee the existence of a single “Criteria for Selection and Permanence of Nursing Journals in the BDENF and LILACS databases”, as well as a single “International Committee for the Evaluation of Newspapers of the Nursing VHL”. The criteria and the composition of the committee will also be submitted for approval at the International Meeting of the Nursing VHL network, which will take place in Cuba at the end of the year.

This expansion will also be reflected on the redesign of the Nursing VHL Portal, integrating content, technology, and the retrieval of scientific and technical information published by the countries that make up the Nursing VHL network, provided they meet the selection criteria previously established.

Below we reproduce some of the testimonies received regarding the event held in BIREME:

“The 16^th Meeting of the Nursing VHL Advisory Committee, held at BIREME headquarters, represents a milestone for the initiative, not only for redirecting its paths for the next four years, but especially for creating a new environment in its development process – new actors, new institutions, new projects and new forms of sustainability. It is worth mentioning that BIREME’s participation was effective and decisive for achieving the objectives. Support for working groups was essential for the formulation of proposals and for the definition of strengthening strategies. The impact of the meeting held at BIREME can also be evaluated by the fact of being in an Institution that is highly respected in the health sciences information scenario, including the Nursing scenario in Latin America and the Caribbean. We are grateful to all the partner institutions and their representatives who, over the last 13 years, have been collaborating with the arduous task of systematizing knowledge on Nursing, which is extremely necessary to support teaching, research and practice.” Francisco Carlos Félix Lana, Escola de Enfermagem da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.

“The 16^th Meeting of the Nursing VHL Advisory Committee was very productive. The working group dynamics proposed made it possible to evaluate different sub projects in a systematized manner, including recommendations for the improvement of one of BIREME’s successful experiences, the Nursing VHL, an important Brazilian Nursing project which has now become international. The pleasant physical space of BIREME’s headquarters, the social integration that took place during the tasty snacks and the warm welcome from the part of the BIREME team all contributed to the success of the meeting. The work was arduous, but it was facilitated by the vigor and willingness of all participants.” Regina Lima and Maria Helena Marziale, Revista Latino-Americana de Enfermagem/Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto, USP.

“The 16^th Meeting of the Nursing VHL Advisory Committee was marked by an effective progress in the development and implementation of all its projects and lines of action. I am sure that this success was due to the organization and coordination of the Meeting and the effective participation of all members of the Network and BIREME’s technical staff. In addition, the infrastructure provided by BIREME, as well as the warm welcome received from all its professionals, provided pleasant working days and demonstrated that solidarity and mutual support are essential for the work and operation of a network.” Heloniza Costa (Editor-in-chief of Revista Baiana de Enfermagem/ Universidade Federal da Bahia.

About the Nursing VHL

The Nursing VHL is a project that aims at contributing to the development of nursing, both in practice and in the academic field, promoting access to information products and services and constituting a space for equitable access to nursing knowledge, thus disseminating scientific and technical information and providing high availability and reliability of its information sources.

The VHL is coordinated by the Escola de Enfermagem da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais and conformed by an Advisory Committee that integrates the main institutions producing scientific and technical information in nursing in Brazil. Its Advisory Committee meets once a year since 2003.

With access rates that exceed 1 million page-views per year and 95 thousand users, on average, the Nursing VHL is a reference in scientific information in the field, and it is the first search result on the Internet.

The development of the Nursing VHL is also in line with the actions of the Pan American Health Organization, which launched on May 12, 2018, in the framework of International Nursing Day, the publication “Expanding the roles of nurses in primary health care”, indicating the crucial role of nursing in expanding access to health and offering nine steps and activities to implement the role of advanced practice nurses in the countries of the Americas.

According to Dr. Diego González, Director of BIREME/PAHO/WHO, “the work we do to facilitate access to information for nursing teams helps strengthen primary health care, especially at the local level, where in many cases it is the nursing team that gives patients the first health care. BIREME will continue to support both the International Network and the national Nursing networks”.