Consequences of the Early Phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic for Home-Healthcare Recipients in Norway: A Nursing Perspective

Municipal home-healthcare services are becoming increasingly important as growing numbers of people are receiving healthcare services in their home. The COVID-19 pandemic represented a challenge for this group, both in terms of care providers being restricted in performing their duties and care receivers declining services for fear of being infected. Furthermore, preparedness plans were not always in place. The purpose of this study is to investigate the consequences for recipients of home healthcare in Norway of the actual level of COVID-19 infection spread in the local population, as observed by licensed nurses working in home-healthcare services. Approximately 2100 nurses answered the survey. The most common adverse consequences for home-healthcare recipients were increased isolation and loneliness, increased health concerns, and the loss of respite care services. An increased burden for relatives/next of kin and fewer physical meetings with service providers were frequently observed and reported as well. This study shows that there were more adverse consequences for service users in municipalities with higher levels of contagion than in those with lower levels of contagion. This indicates that the municipalities adapted measures to the local rate of contagion, in line with local municipal preparedness strategies.