Practical information for applicants

As a teaching hospital, we welcome several hundred students a year from various disciplines. In addition to encouraging and supporting the development of skills and knowledge, we offer good training opportunities and supervision for our staff. Medical students complete their final two years at Nordland Hospital. Our local university offers further training for nurses. The hospital provides special grants for this.

• A language course to enable you to speak and understand Norwegian – we even have our own language school
• A language course for your partner
• A place to live
• Relocation funding

You must have good Norwegian skills. Basic English is also preferred. Here is a link to a free program for language training:  LearnNow

Authorisation for health personnel

All health personnel must be authorised by the Norwegian Directorat for Health. Please see their website for information on how to apply.

To work in Norway you need a residence permit from The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration.

You have to go to the local tax office to be issued with a standard personal ID number. You will then receive a tax deduction card.

For importation of cars and other things see the website of The Norwegian Customs and Excise.

Bank account

To open a bank account bring your passport and personal ID number to a local bank office.

Your employer registers you with the National Insurance Service. If you are entitled to child benefit (if you have children under the age of 18) you need to apply at your local NAV office. You must have a police certificate when required, for example for work involving children and mentally disabled persons. You must submit documentation that you have received necessary vaccinations. If you do not find what you need here, please visit nyinorge.no

Adjustments to accommodate diversity and policy

Employees are our most important resource. We strive to attract the very best professionals, and we will make adjustments so that all employees will feel comfortable in the workplace and perform at their best.

The health enterprise shall ensure that diversity in the population is reflected to the greatest extent possible in its hiring practices. Therefore, one of our personnel policy objectives is to achieve a balanced mix in terms of gender and age, and to recruit qualified persons with immigrant backgrounds.

In Norway, we have predictable and regulated working hours of 38–40 hours per week. We have annual salary reviews and regulated pay levels, and we consider our hospital to be competitive in terms of salary.

There are provisions for paid sick leave if you become ill yourself, as well as if your young children are ill. We have 54 weeks of paid maternity/paternity leave, of which 10 weeks are reserved for the father. Working relationships in Norway are not highly hierarchical, and leadership positions are not determined by profession. We have a fairly informal culture and usually address each other by first name, even when speaking to senior staff. Women are treated with the same respect as men, and we promote multidisciplinary teamwork. Communication is not always highly direct, and what may initially sound like a request may in some cases be an instruction.

Nordland Hospital has a long tradition of employing people from different countries around the world. At the moment we have employees from about 40 nations working here. We understand that recruiting people from abroad requires something extra, as living and working in Northern Norway is different to working in central Europe. For this reason we prefer to spend a little more time and effort on foreign recruitment to ensure that we have exchanged the correct and necessary information before you start to work for us.

Interview

Prior to a formal interview we would like to have read your complete CV and to have had an informal meeting. This could be at a recruitment fair or even via telecommunication like Skype. If we both agree to go on from there we will invite you to a formal interview at our hospital. Here you will be able to meet colleagues and see your potential place of work. If you accept an offer of work, you will need to apply for Authorisation and Licence and complete various documents from our hospital. Our staff can provide you with help if you need it.

• Language courses
• Moving expenses and housing. The hospital will cover some of the cost of moving including airfares and the transportation of furniture and goods
• The hospital will assist in finding you a suitable place to live.