– The image gives a discomfort associated with shortness of breath, the inability to breathe. But it also gives hope

– I think the meaning of the image is that it can stimulate reflection on how to give helpers in society, also beyond nurses, the air they need to continue helping others, says nurse Gro Kristine Kiil Larsen.

In her work as a clinical palliative care nurse, she faced several storms and came across the wall. She has recounted these experiences when street artist AFK was going to portray her in the artwork “Breathe”.

– We depend on nurses in society, and if we don’t take care of them, they disappear, says Kiil Larsen.

The artwork is part of the celebration of the International Year of Nursing 2020.

Larsen is one of nine nurses from across the country to be performed by nine different street performers. Images also include music, text, and movies.

The goal is to honor skilled and committed nurses who inspire others.

– The image gives a discomfort associated with shortness of breath, the inability to breathe. But it also gives hope. We can start, we can reach a surface and we can bring the lungs of the health service to life, said the leader of the Norwegian Nurses Association, Lill Sverresdatter Larsen, during the presentation of the work.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of the “duty nurse” Florence Nightingale. Therefore, 2020 should be an anniversary year for nurses.

But the corona pandemic has caused the postponement of several brands. Nurses have been on the front lines of the country since March.

One in five nurses quits

– At this time, one in five nurses resigns because she is exhausted. If this depletion continues, Norway will lose 30,000 nurses by 2030. This is a global trend, writes AFK on Instagram.

With the photo, AFK wanted to raise the voice of Kiil Larsen and other nurses. As well as helping to shed light on the struggles of nurses in an environment of understaffing, where economic business models contrast with what a good healthcare system is, according to him.

– The first step to achieving positive change is admitting the uncomfortable truth. The solutions are many, but how politically dedicated is he to prioritizing human life over profit ?, asks AFK.

AFK figures refer to the date of 2017 and are a survey by Statistics Norway.

– Symbol of all nurses

Gro Kristine Kiil Larsen was thrilled when she finally saw the result.

– It was very special. Although we nurses are used to a lot, it is not common to be seen as a nurse in this way with an issue as important as air and respiration.

Beyond being a portrait, she believes that AFK has managed to show something that many nurses have felt: the sensation of gasping for air.

– The image is a symbol of all nurses. All the nurses in Norway, who have been in a special situation this year and still are. “We have felt the pressure in a normal situation, and now also in a pandemic,” says Lill Sverresdatter Larsen from the Norwegian Nurses Association.

She believes that the image can express any word it cannot.

– It can provide an understanding of what nurses do, the importance of nurses in the health service, but also in society as a whole. That we are in this together, but that someone should take care of the nurses.