In January 2013, the BCCDC STI Outreach program was contacted by three street nurses from Oslo, Norway, who were planning a trip to Vancouver. They wanted to spend time learning about the BCCDC’s Outreach/Street Nurse Program.
On February 26th and 27th Jenny, Marta and Christine arrived in Vancouver full of enthusiasm, inspired by the work of the Vancouver nurses portrayed in the DVD Bevel Up, Drugs, Users and Outreach Nursing. (1)
During their visit, the nurses shared the story of how they funded their trip to Canada. In the fall of 2012, they were approached by a Norwegian TV station asking if they could be filmed while working in Oslo. When the show aired on Norwegian television, the nurses were asked if they had a particular wish. They described how they had been inspired by the Bevel Up DVD and said that they would like to visit Vancouver. The “documentary” was actually the Norwegian version of “Secret Millionaire”, a reality show in which millionaires go undercover in a community and then give donations to various community members. The nurses’ wish was granted.
The Outreach/Street Nurse team spent two busy days explaining the ins and outs of the Outreach program. The Norwegians spent time at various drop-ins, shelters and detox sites in Vancouver, including Watari, Insite, Onsite, the Community Transitional Care Team and Sheway, and also accompanied us on our street outreach work in Surrey.
They returned to Norway full of ideas and keen to incorporate HIV testing in their work.
Now the Outreach team is looking for a millionaire to send us to Norway!
References
1. BCCDC and NFB production in collaboration with CanadaWild Productions, 2008.