Involvement of the community nurse in the case management of patients with rare diseases

The community nurse activity includes programs, health services and public health actions provided at the community level and is carried out in an integrated system, through collaboration with family doctors' offices, social services and educational services, other medical and social structures, public or private, within the community and the county, including with non-governmental organizations, in order to increase the access of the population belonging to vulnerable groups to medical and social services. Rare disease is defined as a life-threatening condition or chronic disability that affects less than five out of 10,000 people. Each rare disease affects a small percentage of the population, but due to the fact that over 7,000 different rare diseases are currently described, it is estimated that about 8% of Europe's population is affected by a rare disease. Most rare diseases, due to the fact that they are rare and do not benefit from treatment, are also called orphan diseases. It is necessary for the Ministry of Health to strengthen the training program for staff in the community nurse network and to support the development of the community nurse network in achieving case management of rare diseases.