Paul De Raeve has been a registered nurse since 1984. He obtained a master's degree in nursing science at the Free University of Brussels, a Master degree in Statistics from the Catholic University of Brussels, and a PhD degree from the Kings College University of London. Dr De Raeve was appointed as staff manager at the Free University hospital of Brussels, part-time delegated to the Belgium Ministry of Health from 1991 till 2001 and was responsible for developing a national comparable data warehouse for nursing, introducing qualitative indicators within the hospital financing system and providing nursing data for the political decision-making process. In 2002, Dr De Raeve was appointed Secretary General of the European Federation of Nurses Associations (EFN). As EU lobbyist, Dr De Raeve's main activities relate to the promotion and protection of nurses in the EU, with a specific focus on the EU political agenda, with a specific focus on education, workforce and quality and safety of care.