BFI election: New professional board elected – Kaja Marienborg continues as chair
The BFI members have had their say: A completely new professional board has been elected, and Kaja Marienborg is embarking on a new period as leader.
The Council for Professional Ethics has also elected a new chair and a new board. Ragnhild Brataker will chair the professional ethics council for the next three years, and the newly elected professional board and the professional ethics council have been elected for the period 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2028.
"A very competent and committed board"
Kaja Marienborg thanks for the trust and looks forward to forming a completely new professional board in the period 2026–2028.
"I am very grateful for the renewed confidence. The new professional board consists of professionals with broad experience from different parts of the biomedical laboratory sciences, and together we have a strong starting point for raising important issues going forward. I look forward to working with a professionally strong and dedicated board," she says.
The new professional board faces several key tasks. Marienborg points out, among other things, the importance of authorisation, clear core tasks and correct classification in line with EU regulations. "This is crucial for biomedical laboratory technicians educated in the EU to be able to obtain authorisation in Norway and contribute to the Norwegian health service," she points out.
- We will continue to work politically, and we must probably acknowledge that education will be an area where we must take a new and clearer stand. This applies to both salary levels for basic positions and professional positions, and how we can facilitate increasing the competence of other occupational groups that are already important partners in laboratory diagnostics.
Marienborg acknowledges that this is a topic that is perceived as inflamed for many, but at the same time emphasizes that the profession must be willing to develop in line with society's needs.
- It is necessary to ensure a long-awaited salary increase for the special expertise that medical laboratory diagnostics actually represents.
Academic Board 2026–2028
Leader: Kaja Marienborg, Biomedical Laboratory Technician MSc, Assistant Professor at the Biomedical Laboratory Science Programme, OsloMet
Deputy: Eva Kathrin Luther Skjong, biomedical laboratory scientist and company representative at Helse Møre og Romsdal, Medical Biochemistry and Blood Bank, Ålesund Hospital
Directors:
- Ida Marie Haugom, Quality Manager and Head of Department, First Medical Laboratory
- Beth-Marie Sandaker Brotnov, Head of Section, Department of Microbiology, Oslo University Hospital
- Kim Bjørnar Sørli Dammen, Biomedical Laboratory Scientist, Department of Medical Biochemistry, St. Olav's Hospital
- Joachim Tyse, Head of System Administration and Development, Noklu's head office in Bergen
Vara:
- Jan Helge C. Blix, Laboratory Advisor, UNN Tromsø
- Hilde K. Midtbø-Hjelvik, Medical Bioengineer, Department of Pathology, Haukeland University Hospital
New chair of the Professional Ethics Council
Ragnhild Brataker, medical laboratory technician at Telemark Hospital, has been elected as the new chair of the Professional Ethics Council (YER).
She has previously held positions in NOBI, and was involved in the merger process with NITO. She has also been a board member of NITO's executive board and a member of the central collective bargaining committee NITO Spekter. Currently, she is chair of the board of NITO Telemark.
- I can only thank you for the trust I have been given to lead the Professional Ethics Council, and look forward to contributing to the field of ethics in BFI in the next three-year period, says Brataker.
- I would also like to encourage all BFI members to report issues that you think it is important that we address in YER, she adds.
Professional Ethics Council 2026–2028
Leader: Ragnhild Brataker, medical laboratory scientist, Telemark Hospital
Directors:
- Trond Brattelid, Associate Professor (dr. philos), Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
- Christina Matheson Mæland, Chief Bioengineer, Department of Medical Microbiology, Stavanger University Hospital
- Sayana Gnanasegaram, Senior Medical Bioengineer Hematology, Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital
Vara:
- Susanna Mai Woldstad Utvær, Biomedical Laboratory Engineer, Volvat Medical Center, Majorstuen
