Alexis Arcuri & Narissa Urciuoli

In clinical practice today in Oslo, Norway, our group of students met with Norwegian students in the morning and interacted with residents of the community and experienced various aspects of the Norwegian healthcare system. With the Norwegian nursing students, we learned the role of the nurse at Cathinka Guldberg Center at Lovisenberg while others learned the role of the homecare nurse and traveled around Oslo meeting residents. We started the day at 8:00 am with coffee and pastries at Kaffebrenneriet. After we had some caffeine and sugar in our system, we took the tram and traveled for about 25 minutes to our clinical location. Once we arrived at our clinical site, we met the Norwegian students that we accompanied for the day and changed into nursing scrubs provided by the facility.

We learned how home care nurses in Norway assist residents with activies of daily living such as ostomy bag changes, wound care, medication administration, and assisting with meal preparation and getting dressed. In Norway, this care provided by the home health care nurse allows residents to receive health care assistance while remaining independent in their home. One interesting aspect of home health care we observed during our experience was the use of a medication dispensing machine which can hold approximately 2 week’s worth of medication for residents living at home and will also dispense scheduled medication throughout the day. This helps reduce the amount of travel required for residents to fill their prescriptions.

If residents do travel to the pharmacy or leave their home to venture out into the community, we noticed the vast amount of accessibility for wheelchair bound individuals. This aligns with Sustainable Development goal #10: Reduced Inequalities. On the buses and trams there are designated areas for people in wheelchairs or using strollers to have space. The doors of the trams and buses all open exactly at curb level so it is easier for a wheelchair or stroller to enter. Every set of steps, for example leading to the grocery store, or inside of a store include a ramp to allow for those on wheels to have easier access.

We are excited to continue exploring Oslo and finding ways in which we can compare our healthcare system in the US to that of Norway!

We made it to Norway! A group of us students met together at the airport and utilized Norway’s public train to transport us to our hotel. We grabbed our bags and pushed them up a long hill to the top where we found the Royal Palace and then strolled through the park to get to our home for the next 2 weeks. While out walking my initial impressions were how many locals were out and about moving their bodies. I noticed full families going for a stroll, individuals out for an afternoon jog, and couples walking dogs. As we walked, I saw that most people carried a reusable water bottle and there were many places to fill them throughout the park.

When we met up with the Norwegian students later, they informed us they were experiencing unseasonable temperatures today. The weather was sunny and warm in the high 70s. I noted that most people were out walking and not many on the busses and trams. The students informed us Norwegians love every excuse to walk and if the weather is nice they take full advantage of it. The local’s attention to moving their bodies and soaking up vitamin D from the sun is a great example of sustainability goal 3: good health and well-being. This encouraged us students to walk instead of taking the tram when we were exploring, giving us the chance to move our bodies and take in the beautiful views around the city!