Care services, 1999

Of the 43 240 beds in institutions for the elderly and disabled, 35 700 are beds in nursing homes, an increase of just over 900 beds since 1998. As in previous years, the number of nursing home beds has risen, while the number of beds in old peoples homes is declining, with 6 800 beds left at the end of 1999. There are now a total of 1 037 institutions, an increase of six institutions since 1998.

The institutions had more than 37 700 rooms, of which 85 per cent were single rooms. Since the beginning of the 1990s, the percentage of single rooms has increased by 8.1 percentage points. By the end of the year nearly 42 700 persons lived in institutions. Just over 74 per cent of the residents were over 80 years, while 3.7 per cent were under the age of 67. More than 87 per cent of those who live in institutions have been admitted for a long-term stay, i.e., a stay which at the time of admittance was meant to last more than three months.

Increase in the number of dwellings

As for the institutions, the number of dwellings for elderly and disabled users increased from 1998 to 1999. The number of these dwellings grew rapidly in the second half of the 1990s. A total of 44 400 dwellings were registered in the statistics in 1999, and more than three-fourths are owned by municipalities (local governments). Among the dwellings were 10 120 care services-linked units built with a Norwegian State Housing Bank start-up subsidy. The number of care services-linked dwellings has increased by nearly 4 800 units since the first time they were registered in the statistics in 1997.

At the end of the year, nearly 44 000 persons lived in dwellings for the aged and disabled. Younger residents, i.e., those under 67 years of age, make up 28.5 per cent of all residents of such dwellings while those who are 80 years and older account for 41.5 per cent.

Increase in number of users of home based services

Just over 157 400 persons received assistance from the home services at the close of 1999, an increase of 4 600 from the year before. Just over 40 per cent of the users receive practical assistance as the only means of help, i.e., home help. 5 600 of the users received care from home help or home nursing for more than 35.5 hours per week. In contrast to residents of institutions, where a minority is younger than 67 years of age, nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of the users of home services were in this age category.

At 31 December 1999, 83.2 per cent of the municipalities offered 24-hour home nursing care services. Just over 5 200 people received a cash benefit from their municipality in exchange for caring for children, parents or other close relatives in need of assistance. The number caregivers receiving such cash benefits has more than doubled since 1994.

Steady increase in man-years

Man-years in the nursing and care services increased by 3 600 from the end of 1998 to the end of 1999. In 1999 nursing and care services the total number of employees equalled 86 400 man-years, or around 0.43 man-years per user. Man-years in proportion to the population over 67 years of age also shows an increasing trend, from 134 man-years per 1 000 population in 1998 to 140 in 1999.

Tables:

• Table 1 Beds in institutions for the aged and disabled, by type of ward. 1996-1999
• Table 2 Rooms in institutions for the aged and disabled, by type of room. Per cent (N=number of rooms). 1991-1999
• Table 3 Residents in institutions for the elderly and disabled, by age. 1992-1999
• Table 4 Residents in dwellings for the aged and disabled. Number of dwellings. 1994-1999
• Table 5 Users of home-based services, by age. 1992-1999
• Table 6 Man-years within the nursing and care services. 1992-1999
• Table 7 Beds in institutions for the elderly and disabled. 1991-1999
• Table 8 Man-years, by type of education and municipality. 1999