Support and training

BarnsBeste has developed a resource package for municipalities’ work with children as next of kin. This initiative is based on a growing need for clearer guidelines and tools that municipalities can use to identify and care for children living with illness, substance abuse issues or other challenges in the family.

The resource package has been prepared in line with national guidelines and is based on evidence-based practice. The aim is to ensure that all children as next of kin receive the necessary support and follow-up in the municipality where they live.

The project is a collaboration between municipalities, healthcare professionals and experts from BarnsBeste, with the aim of creating a flexible, user-friendly tool that can be adapted to local needs. The package contains professional guidelines, assessment tools and training modules to ensure that municipal services have the necessary expertise to care for children as next of kin effectively.

E-learning developed for healthcare and care professionals in municipal health services. The course takes approximately 30 minutes to complete and is available at kslaring.no.

Children as next of kin – course for healthcare and care professionals in the municipality

This course

• provides a basic understanding of the concept of children as next of kin.
• provides sufficient knowledge to contribute to the work when patients have minor children or siblings.
• is based on the Guidance on next of kin in health and care services.
• complies with the statutory provisions on children as next of kin in sections 10a and 10b and section 25, third paragraph, of the Health Personnel Act.

E-learning developed for healthcare professionals in specialist healthcare services. The course takes 10–15 minutes to complete and is available in the learning portal of each health trust. Take the course in the learning portal if you work in specialist healthcare services.

Children as next of kin – the patient’s children and siblings

This course:

• provides a basic understanding of the concept of children as next of kin.
• provides sufficient knowledge to contribute to the work when patients have minor children or siblings.
• is based on evidence-based professional procedures for work with children as next of kin, published on Helsebiblioteket.no.
• complies with the statutory provisions on children as next of kin in sections 10a and 25, third paragraph, of the Health Personnel Act, and section 3-7a of the Specialist Health Services Act.
• Caring for children who have been bereaved, as set out in section 10b of the Health Personnel Act, is mentioned in the course but is not covered in detail.
• contains information about procedures and guidelines that apply to your health trust.

This is version 9.0 of the course – updated 15.02.2026

PowerPoint presentation based on the e-learning course for specialist healthcare services: Children as next of kin – the patient’s children and siblings. Dismiss the (x in the top-right corner) request to log in to open the PowerPoint presentation.
 
Children as next of kin – the patient’s children and siblings format:4x3

Children as next of kin – the patient’s children and siblings format:16x9

• An introduction to the field of children as next of kin
• Healthcare professionals’ responsibilities and tasks in work with children as next of kin
• The presentation consists of 29 slides with notes
• The notes contain an introduction to the topic and further explanation of the slide content
• The slides can be used in full, combined from different sections, or individually, depending on the needs and objectives of the training
• This is version 2.0 of the presentation – revised to correspond with version 2.0 of the e-learning course, revised in 2019

The Norwegian Medical Association has developed a mandatory online course for general practitioners in collaboration with BarnsBeste.

Children as next of kin – online course

The Norwegian Medical Association has developed a mandatory online course for general practitioners in collaboration with BarnsBeste and Kristiansand Municipality.

The doctor and child welfare services – online course

E-learning course for employees in healthcare services, teachers, public health nurses and kindergarten staff. Developed by the Bereavement Support Unit at Akershus University Hospital.

Children and young people in grief

The film provides a basic introduction to how healthcare professionals can support the patient’s children and siblings.
The film is short and is based on the e-learning course BarnsBeste created for specialist health services. It can be used for training or in other contexts where the topic is children as next of kin. Watch the video:

Since 2015, BarnsBeste has worked with Norway’s health trusts to develop evidence-based professional procedures for supporting children as next of kin.

The published version of the professional procedures is version 4.0, updated in 2024. The procedures have been approved by Sørlandet Hospital HF and are available to all organisations in specialist health services.

The latest update emphasises government guidance by aligning the procedures’ structure and summarised content with the next of kin guide. The procedures also link directly to further information in the guide.

The procedures consist of two documents that can be used either as one combined procedure or as two separate procedures.

Health trusts and organisations can link to their own local procedures.

Overall procedure for supporting children as next of kin

Procedure for supporting children as next of kin

Shared reference list

This survey is part of BarnsBeste’s knowledge collection and provides a basis for developing recommendations for supporting children as next of kin in specialist health services.

BarneansvarligPersonell_.pdf

Here we have compiled links to useful, quality-assured online resources developed by other organisations. Professionals can use these resources when working with children and young people who are next of kin, or as support for conversations, teaching and follow-up.

BarnsBeste is not responsible for the content of external websites, but has selected them because they may be useful in practice.

• Talking about suicide:A national website with information, advice and practical tools for talking with children and young people about suicidal thoughts and suicide.

Children as next of kin in emergencies – video

Children who experience acute illness or accidents often find them traumatic. Children need openness, information and follow-up. Training video for prehospital services.

Children as next of kin in emergencies

Digital stories from Helsenorge.no

These short films refer viewers to information on Helsenorge about children’s needs when they experience illness and addiction in the family. The films are digital stories with captions and can be used with or without sound. They can be used by specialist health services, GPs and other health services.

The films can be downloaded free of charge from Vimeo:

Digital story: father and son

Digital story: mother and daughter

Introductory film for healthcare professionals – the patient’s children and siblings

The film provides a basic introduction to how healthcare professionals can support the patient’s children and siblings.
The film is short and is based on the e-learning course BarnsBeste created for specialist health services. It can be used for training or in other contexts where the topic is children as next of kin.
Watch the video

Grief posters

Posters about grief offering practical advice on how we can support children and families. They are designed for people who work with children and families.

Read more and download the posters here

We are currently not sending out posters or materials, as we are working on revising and evaluating existing content.

BarnsBeste has translated information about children as next of kin for healthcare professionals receiving refugees from Ukraine. You can download it for free here.

Children need openness about illness​

Talk to children about illness in the family