European Health Insurance Card (Europeisk helsetrygdkort)

If you travel in Europe and are a national of and a member of the National Insurance of one of the 25 member countries of the EEA, you should carry a European Health Insurance Card, which entitles you to treatment on a par with the citizens of these countries. The cards are of a uniform design and each carries the flag of and an explanatory text in the language of the country that issued it. In Norway, once you are a citizen or are married to a Norwegian citizen and are a member of the National Insurance scheme, you may apply for a card at its offices or order one online at www.trygdeetaten.no.

Exemption card (Frikort)

Once the sum of your Co-payments has reached the Co-payment limit for the year – either Co-payment limit 1 for fixed services as recorded on your Co-payment receipt card or Co-payment limit 2 for variable services as substantiated by your receipts for them – you may apply to the local National Insurance office for an exemption card that entitles you to free treatment for the rest of the calendar year.

Family allowances (Barnetrygd)

If you are the parent of a child less than 18 years old, you will automatically receive a monthly allowance. If you live in the Arctic regions of the country or are a single parent, you will receive an additional allowance. The allowances are set once a year; the basic allowance for one child is about one-fifth of the basic amount (Chapter 2). Contact your local National Insurance office for details.

Female genital mutilation (Kjønnslemlestelse)

Sometimes called female circumcision, female genital mutilation (FGM) is a traditional practice in some societies, but is illegal in Norway. Those who perform FGM or aid its performance, including parents, are liable to prosecution with penalties up to six years in prison, whether the procedure is performed in Norway or abroad by a Norwegian citizen or resident. The woman herself cannot be penalised. For further details on FGM, see the World Health Organization Fact Sheet on it, available for downloading at www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets.

If you are a girl or woman threatened with FGM or if you wish to report the practice of it, contact the nearest health clinic. If have cause to fear it, you can discuss your fears in your native language, in one of the network groups supported by the MiRA resource centre (Chapter 33).

The relevant Norwegian law does not apply to procedures performed for medical reasons, such as in connection with childbirth, for correction of congenital abnormalities or as part of Sex reassignment.

First aid courses (Opplæring i førstehjelp)

The easiest way to acquire first aid skills is to take one of the many courses offered throughout the country by the Norwegian Red Cross and Norwegian People’s Aid (Chapter 33). These two organisations, as well as the Norwegian Air Ambulance and some colleges offer occupational first aid courses, such as those held by maritime schools for fishermen. There are five general types of courses:

• Basic courses, usually from 4 to 27 hours in length, for the general public.
• Refresher and extension courses for those already trained.
• Appointed persons courses, as for safety delegates in workplaces.
• Specific skills courses, as for persons working with children.
• Rescue service courses, as for ski patrols, mountain rescue teams and the like.

In most municipalities, first aid services are provided by volunteer Aid Corps (Hjelpekorps). So for information on courses, or for volunteer duty when you are suitably trained, call the local corps; look under Norsk Folkehjelp Sanitet or Røde Kors Hjelpekorps in the Pink Pages. First aid activities throughout the country are coordinated by the Norwegian First Aid Council (Norsk førstehjelpsråd), PO Box 1 Grønland, 0133 Oslo, Tel: 22054000, Fax: 22054040, www.norskforstehjelpsrad.no, post@norskforstehjelpsrad.no.

Free Hospital Choice (Fritt sykehusvalg)

You may choose the hospital in which to be treated. A national service, Free Hospital Choice Norway (Fritt sykehusvalg Norge) provides a freephone hotline Tel: 80041004 and an online interactive guide, in Norwegian and in English, at www.sykehusvalg.net, that provides information on the treatment capabilities of hospitals across the country.

Gender identity disorders (Kjønnsidentitetsproblemer)

You can be treated for transsexualism and other gender identity disorders (GID) by first contacting your regular GP, who will arrange for you to see a clinical psychologist. If the doctor and the psychologist are convinced that you need treatment, they will refer you to the GID Clinic at Rikshospitalet, Oslo, www.rikshospitalet.no, select GID-klinikken from the pull-down list in the enheter og fagområde box.

Green prescription (Grønn resept)

A Green prescription is an alternative to medication and consists of written advice to a patient to be physically active as part of the patient’s management of lifestyle illnesses, particularly high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. The first Green prescriptions were issued in the mid-1990s in New Zealand as part of an initiative to combat lifestyle illnesses. The Green prescription initiative spread rapidly, most notably to Canada and the UK. In Norway, the first Green prescriptions were issued in October 2003. If you are overweight, suffer hypertension or type 2 diabetes, you can cooperate with your regular GP to improve your health through following a Green prescription programme.

Health clinics (Helsestasjoner)

The local health clinic is your principal access to primary care, including health information and treatment and advice for minor illnesses and injuries. Most health clinics provide services to pregnant women, babies and children up to the age of 16. They are staffed by a doctor, nurses, a midwife and sometimes there is also a dental clinic attached, staffed by qualified dental nurses and a dentist. If your children are born in Norway, they are automatically registered with the local health clinic. Your child will be notified to come in for regular development checks, vaccination and hearing and eyesight tests. This free service tracks children until they are 16 years old. You can find your local health clinic by enquiring at the town or city hall (rådhuset), asking a neighbour, or looking it up in the Pink Pages in the section for your municipality. Health clinics have also been set up for young adults, where they deal with contraception, eating disorders, sexually transmitted diseases and depression.

Health screening (Helseundersøkelse)

The Norwegian Institute of Public Health works together with municipal health care services to provide screening for tuberculosis (tuberkulose), cardiovascular illnesses (hjerte-karsykdommer) and pneumoconiosis (støvlungesykdom), as well as other illnesses. Usually you will be notified by post when screening is to be done in your municipality. For further details, contact your local health clinic.

Homeopathy (Homøopati)

Since the early 1930s, homeopathy has been practised in Norway, and since 2003, it has been regulated by the law on alternative medicine. There are no legal qualifications for a homeopath, but the Norwegian Homeopaths Association (Norske homeopaters landsforbund), sets standards that are recognised in the profession, and more than 400 homeopaths indicate their qualifications with the suffix title MNHL (“Member of the Norwegain Homeopaths Association”). In Oslo, there are two schools of homeopathy, The Norwegian Academy for Natural Medicine (Norsk Akademi for Natur Medisin) and the Scandinavin Institute for Classical Homeopathy (Skandinavisk Institutt for Klassisk Homeopati). For further details on these schools and on the practise of homeopathy, contact Norske Homeopaters Landsforbund, Storgt 39, 0182 Oslo, Tel: 22111299, Fax: 22111303, www.nhl.no, nhl@nhl.no. You can locate a homeopath by looking under homeopat in the Yellow Pages.

Hospitals (Sykehus)

Hospitals are operated as a public service by the Regional Health Authorities and are financed through income taxes and government appropriations. Hospital capacities are sometimes strained, but the countrywide figure of 14.4 hospital beds per 1,000 population is the fourth highest in the world.

Usually, your regular GP or another doctor will refer you to the closest hospital, or, if you wish, to another hospital, if you exercise your right to Free Hospital Choice. All hospitals are obliged to provide immediate help (øyblikkelig hjelp) to victims of accidents (ulykker) and acute illness (livstruende sykdommer) as well as births (fødsler) without recommendation from a doctor.

Some private health care clinics offer hospitalisation services.

Hospital visits (Sykehus besøk)

Visitng hours are seldom rigidly fixed, though if in doubt, you should call the hospital in advance. Anything is acceptable as a gift to a patient, though some old wives tales still exist, such as when a new mother takes her flowers home with her from the maternity ward it is said that she will return within a year. Most hospitals have small kiosks in their main entrance halls where you can purchase flowers, sweets, newspapers and magazines.

Institute of Public Health (Folkehelseinstituttet)

The Norwegian Institute of Public Health is a national centre for expertise in epidemiology, infections disease control, environmental medicine, forensic toxicology and research on drug abuse. It works with the municipal health care services to provide screening and conduct surveys; PO Box 4404 Nydalen, 0403 Oslo, Tel: 22042200, Fax: 22353605, www.fhi.no, folkehelseinstituttet@fhi.no.

Medicine (Legemidler)

You can buy some over-the-counter (reseptfrie) medicines, such as analgesics, antacids and nose sprays, in supermarkets, while pharmacies offer a broader selection. Only pharmacies sell prescription (reseptpliktige) medicines. If you wish to find a medicine, you can enquire in a pharmacy or look it up in the condensed patient’s version of the pharmacopoeia that is sold by pharmacies and bookshops and may be ordered online at www.felleskatalogen.no/pasientutgave.

You can have a prescription filled at any pharmacy. If you live far from the nearest pharmacy, you may have your prescriptions filled by post at no extra charge; call the pharmacy for details.

If you need a prescription medicine to treat a long-term or chronic illness, your doctor will give you a blue prescription that entitles you to have part of the cost of the medicine covered by National Insurance.

If you travel to or from Norway and take a prescription medicine that may be classified as a narcotic, as are many hypnotics, sedatives and painkillers, you will need to prove that it is necessary and for your personal use only. If you wish to know if a specific medicine is classified as a narcotic, ask at a pharmacy or the Norwegian Medicines Agency. The pharmacy that filled your prescription can issue a Schengen certificate that provides the required proof in the EU/EFTA area.

Medicines Agency (Statens legemiddelverk)

The Norwegian Medicines Agency (NoMA) is the approval and regulatory agency for new and existing medicines and for the marketing and sales of medicines. It principally provides current information to medical professionals and to pharmacists, but it also provides information to the general public, Sven oftedalsvei 6, 0950 Oslo, Tel: 22897700, Fax: 22897799, www.legemiddelverket.no, post@legemiddelvderket.no in Norwegian and www.noma.no, post@noma.no in English.

Mental health care (Psykisk helsevern)

You may seek mental health services locally, at a municipal health clinic or by contacting your regular GP. More specialist care is provided by the District Psychiatric Centre that serves the municipality where you live. For instance, if you suffer anxiety, bereavement or depression, you can get help nearby. If you need further support, you may be referred to specialists.

Primary mental health care is extensive and in addition to the services of health clinics and doctors, includes housing for 3,400 mentally impaired people across the country. Child and youth psychiatric clinics (Barne- og ungdomspsykiatriske poliklinikker, BUP) provide aid to the young, while Pedagogical-psychological services (Pedagogisk-psykologisk tjenester, PPT) are associated with all schools.

Help is available whenever you need it. In an emergency, when life or health are endangered, call the 113 medical emergency number. If the situation is not acute, call your regular GP or the closest emergency clinic. If you need someone to talk to, call the Mental Health hotline (Mental Helses hjelpetelefon) on 81030030. Further details are available online at www.mentalhelse.no, or the Church SOS (Kirkens SOS) hotline 81533300 or, if you are deaf, its text telephone 55325697.

National Cancer Hospital (Det norske radiumhospital)

The National Cancer Hospital is the country’s specialist facility for treating cancer and is the largest comprehensive cancer centre in northern Europe, Ullernchausseen 70, Montebello, 0310 Oslo, Tel: 22934000, www.radiumhospitalet.no, post@dnr.no.

National Insurance (Folketrygden)

National Insurance is the oldest and most extensive provision of the Norwegian Social Insurance scheme, which arguably is one of the most comprehensive in the world. Indeed, the country is said to be a welfare state, and rightfully so: the word folketrygden literally means “people’s social insurance”, and the root word, trygd also means ”protection” or “security”. In principle, everyone contributes and everyone benefits. If you earn income, you and your employer both pay National Insurance taxes on your earnings. If you are self-employed, you contribute at a higher rate. For most people, the principal benefits are pensions (Chapter 39) and unemployment benefits (Chapter 3) Most benefits are set in relation to the basic amount (Chapter 2), and include:

• pension at retirement age of 67
• survivor’s benefits, to widow or widower
• disability benefits
• rehabilitation benefits
• occupational injury benefits
• benefits to single parents
• sickness, maternity and adoption benefits
• unemployment benefits
• funeral grants.

The measures are extensive and there are clear brochures on the benefits listed above as well as on other aspects of National Insurance, in Norwegian, English and other languages, available at National Insurance offices throughout the country, listed under trygdekontor in the Pink Pages. For a complete overview, see Det norske trygdesystemet (Norwegian edition) or The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme (English edition) published by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in printed editions that are updated once a year in January and in online versions that are updated more often and are available for downloading at www.odin.dep.no/asd/norsk/dok/andre_dok/veiledninger for the Norwegian edition and www.odin.dep.no/asd/engelsk/publ/handbooks for the English edition.

The Norwegian Medical Association (Den norske lægeforening)

The Norwegian Medical Association is the country’s professional medical association that now has more than 22,000 members. It publishes the Journal of The Norwegian Medical Association (Tidsskrift for Den norske løgeforening) and maintains a central facility; Legens hus (“Doctor’s House”), Akersgt 2, PO Box 1152 Sentrum, 0107 Oslo, Tel: 23109000, Fax: 23109010, www.legeforeninge.no, legeforeningen@legeforeningen.no.

Obesity (Fedme)

According to recent data published by World Health Organization, obesity is now a global problem that affects more people than does malnourishment. Obesity now is most often defined by the Body Mass Index (BMI) guideline, which is weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in metres. For instance, a person weighing 80 kg and standing 1.8 metres has a BMI of 80/(1.8 × 1.8) = 24.7. A person with a BMI of 25 or more is considered overweight, and a person with a BMI of 30 or more is obese.

In Norway, the number of overweight people is increasing; according to figures on 40 to 45 year-old men and women, three men in four and one woman in two now are overweight. Obesity is less prevalent than in some other countries, but is increasing. In the early 1980s, 7.5% of all men and 13% of all women in Norway were obese; by the late 1990s, the figures had risen to 14% for men and 17.8% for women.

The Directorate of Health and Social Affairs has taken steps to reverse the trend by setting up two working groups, one for nutrition (avdeling for ernœring) and one for physical activity (avdeling for fysisk aktivitet), to study the problem and implement measures to reduce overweight and obesity in the population. For further information, contact the groups, PO Box 7000, St Olavs plass, 0130 Oslo, Tel: 24163422 for nutrition and 24163421 for physical activity, www.sef.no and www.shdir.no.

Opticians (Optiker)

Opticians make and sell spectacles and contact lenses. Ophthalmic opticians, also called optometrists, test vision in order to prescribe spectacles and contact lenses. Most opticians and ophthalmic opticians are in private practice in optical goods shops (optiske forretninger) in the Yellow Pages. The larger shops, usually called “vision centres” (synssenter) often are associated with an oculist (øyelege) or will have one on the staff, and thereby offer a full range of diagnostic services. Some centres offer polyclinic services, including laser treatment (laserbehandling) of cataracts (grå stœr). The information department (informasjonsavdeling) of the Norwegian Association of Opticians (Norges Optikerforbund) offers many publications on vision, eye care, spectacles, contact lenses and the services of opticians; Øvre Slottsgate 18/20, 0157 Oslo, Tel: 23355450, Fax: 23355440, www.optikerne.no, synsinfo@optikerforbund.no

Organ donation (Organdonasjon)

As in many countries, there is a shortage of organs for transplantation to patients needing them. Legally, a person’s organs may be removed after death unless the deceased or the deceased’s nearest relatives have declared opposition to removal or there is reason to believe that removal may conflict with their views. So if you are for or against donation, you should inform your relatives, so they may be spared a difficult decision on your behalf. Likewise, you should know their wishes.

There is no official donor register or donor cards, so the consent of a donor or the donor’s family is required before organs are removed. The Organ Donation Foundation (Stiftelsen organdonasjon), a joint effort of six national health sector associations, has a printed donor card in its brochure that is available at pharmacies, at doctor’s surgeries and in libraries across the country. The card also can be downloaded from the foundation’s website, www.organdonasjon.no.

A private association, Gi Liv (“Give Life”), also issues donor cards; PO Box 104, 3430 Spikkestad, Tel: 31283035, home.online.no/~ar-iv. The Secton for Organ Transplantation of the Department of Surgery at Rikshospitalet performs all transplants, about 250 a year. A team from the hospital travel to the donor hospitals to remove the organs. For further information contact your regular GP or your local health clinic.

Patient Ombudsman (Pasientombudet)

In all counties, there is a Patient Ombudsman to whom you as a patient or a close relative of a patient may complain about hospital or out-patient medical treatment. The Ombudsman does not charge for services, which, if the case so requires, may include a visit to a hospital. All cases are considered confidential; the details you supply will not be released to any other person or organisation without your permission. You may contact the Ombudsman by post or telephone. The nearest Ombudsman is listed under Pasientombudet in the listing for the county in which you live, in the Pink Pages, and further information is available online at www.helsenett.no/pasientombud.

Pharmacies (Apotek)

Pharmacies are located in all cities and larger towns and villages, while smaller towns and villages may have medicine shops (medisinutsalgene) operated as subsidiaries under the direction of the nearest pharmacy. Unlike drug stores and chemists in other countries, and like the pharmacies in some other European countries, an apotek sells only prescription and over-the-counter medicines, medical supplies and some toiletries. Orthopaedic supplies, consumer medical apparatus and the like are sold by Bandagists.

There are more than 500 pharmacies in the country, and almost all are in one of the four pharmacy chains, Alliance apotekene, Apotek 1, Ditt apotek and Vitus apotek. Each chain has a logo, which will help you find a pharmacy on a street or in a shopping mall. Each of the chains is vertically integrated with one of the three pharmaceutical companies, so if you cannot find a particular brand of medication in one pharmacy, look for it in the pharmacies of competing chains.

You usually can find a pharmacy by looking under the names of the pharmacy chains in the Pink Pages. The nearest after hours pharmacies (apotekvakt) is listed under viktige telefonnummer in the general information section in front of the Pink Pages.