Welcome to NDAF Norwegian veterinary nurse and assistant association

 

NDAF is an association for all working as Veterinary nurses, techs or assistants at veterinary clinics or similar places in Norway, and also students studying veterinary nursing. The association was started in 1991 and the main goals were to arrange seminars for veterinary nurses/assistants and also being the rendezvous for people connected to veterinary clinics all over Norway.

 

Our goals:

• Organising seminars
• Publishing our newsletter “LUSA”
• Keeping in touch with the International Veterinary nurse and Technician Association and thereby staying updated on the profession around the world
• Improving the veterinary nurse education
• Getting an authorisation and also a sheltered title (achieved in 2003)
• Being a rendezvous for all personnel connected to veterinary clinics in Norway
• Giving out scholarships

 

We do have a one year long veterinary nurse education now located at the Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine. This will expand to a two year long education from the fall 2003.

 

I’m sorry most of the pages are in Norwegian but please feel free to use the message board. Most Norwegians understand and write English well and it would be great hearing from people outside Norway. Ideas, suggestions, experiences or just saying hi.

 

What sort of qualifications do you need to work as a veterinary nurse in Norway?

 

Most of the veterinary clinics in Norway are small, which means that everybody at work has to have client contact. This will in most cases require that you speak some Norwegian.

 

There are however some larger clinics in suburban city areas and in the city Centrum that employ English-speaking personnel. In some cities like, Stavanger, it is an advantage that you speak a foreign language. This because of the large amount of foreign companies situated there.

 

When it comes to education there are big differences, some clinics want education and some want to train you themselves. But it is more and more common that the clinics want well educated nurses, with good qualifications and experience. In Norway there is only one school that educates qualified nurses. Students that graduate from Norwegian college of veterinary medicine will hopefully get an official qualification certificate within the school year 2002- 2003. This qualification certificate will give higher status to the profession and it will protect our title “Dyrepleier”. This means that as a foreign educated veterinary nurse you will have to apply  for an evaluation of your education in order to get the certificate. If the curriculum is quite similar to the Norwegian education you will most likely get the certificate.