Does who you live with matter for your health? The influence of partners' socioeconomic characteristics on self-rated health in Norway.

AIMS: Studies of the association between self-rated health and persons' income and education have almost invariably shown that people with higher education and incomes report better health. Less is known of the influence of household members' socioeconomic characteristics on individuals' health. This study thus aimed to assess the extent to which the socioeconomic characteristics of partners may contribute to explaining the variation in the respondents' self-rated health (SRH). METHODS: Using an observational design, we analysed cross-sectional Norwegian survey data on SRH (2015 and 2019), linked to register data on education and income for respondents (N = 7082) and their opposite-sex coresident spouse or partner. We employed logistic regression models to assess the associations between respondents' SRH and the relative income and education of their partner. Average marginal effects were calculated to enable cross-model comparisons. RESULTS: Net of individual characteristics, having a higher-educated partner was positively associated with SRH for both male (OR = 1.56) and female (OR = 1.36) respondents. Having a partner with an above median income (by age and sex) was positively associated with SRH for female (OR = 1.29) respondents only. For education, the positive SRH associations were roughly similar for respondents and partners. For income, the associations were more pronounced for respondents than partners. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that health is affected by the resources (or lack thereof) in one's immediate networks. To reduce social inequalities in health, health personnel might customise interactions to account for household resources. Such knowledge could also be used in health-promoting activities to enhance participation and health competency.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the treatment of injuries during lockdown in Norway.

AIMS: In order to prevent a major outbreak of COVID-19 disease in Norway, a series of lockdown measures was announced on 12 March 2020. The aim of the present paper was to describe the impact of this lockdown on the treatment of injuries. METHODS: We collected hospital data on injury diagnoses from a national emergency preparedness register established during the pandemic. We identified the number of injured patients per day in the period 1 January-30 June 2020, and analysed the change in patient volumes over two three-week periods before and during the lockdown by sex, age, level of care, level of urgency, type of contact and type of injury. RESULTS: Compared to pre-lockdown levels, there was an overall reduction of 43% in injured patients during the first three weeks of lockdown. The decrease in patient contacts did not differ by sex, but was most pronounced among young people. Substantial reductions were observed for both acute and elective treatment and across all levels of care and types of contact, with the exception of indirect patient contacts. The change in patient contacts varied considerably by injury type, with the largest reduction observed for dislocations/sprains/strains. The decrease was much lower for burns/corrosions and poisoning. CONCLUSIONS: A substantial reduction in the treatment of injuries was observed during lockdown in Norway. Possible explanations for this finding include an overall decrease in injury risk, a redistribution of hospital resources and a higher threshold for seeking medical attention as a result of the pandemic.