If only I had a guest blogger. . .

I am beginning week four out of four of my bachelorette month in November. The month has gone by relatively quickly, with weekends at home in Lillehammer and weeknights filled with meeting blogging and Oslo Facebook friends. The nasjonale fag kurs (national nursing course) has been about what I expected: a waste of time and money. But more on that later, like when I find out that I've actually passed it and there aren't any repercussions for telling the truth on the matter.

In the meantime, there have been some interesting developments regarding my new found media fame as Lillehammer's out of work American midwife. This is where I wish I had a guest blogger--Erik specifically--as he has had more contact with the journalist and media in the last few weeks, as I've been off drinking cappuccinos in Oslo.

The day after the original report aired, NRK aired a follow-up report, in which they interviewed the leader of the Norwegian Parliament's health committee. He was quoted as saying he found it strange that it was so difficult for me to get authorization, especially since in the "US there is a high level of education", and he kind of laughed in an "that's-an-understatement" kind of way.

A few days after that, a radio report stated that another member of Parliament on the health committee announced that she had sent a formal letter to the Minister of Health Care Services, demanding that my case--and the appeals board process--be investigated. He apparently has six days to respond to this letter. This particular politician (according to what we are told, 'cause I honestly don't follow Norwegian politics too closely), is rather right-wing and her party has also been known to be rather anti-immigrant. She was questioned as to why she is supporting this (my) case, when they typically take a more anti-immigrant stand, and she essentially responded that, "Look, here is someone who came to Norway because they wanted to work and were not looking for handouts. She is highly trained, highly educated, speaks good Norwegian. . . Norway is never going to survive if we turn away people like this."

To say that this is all a bit surreal is the understatement of the year. I feel so detached from the whole process it's like this is all happening to someone else. I am not hoping for major changes in the law, as I feel that would both take too long to help me out at all (selfish reason), but also because I don't know that it's necessary. At this point what needs to happen is finding some way to enforce fairness and consistency in the way American nursing educations are evaluated.

More to come. . . but for now I need to go write a paper on Norwegian health laws. How ironic.