Fair nursing care when resources are limited: the role of patients and family members in Norwegian home-based services.

The purpose of the study was to investigate nurses' priority decisions and the provision of home-based nursing care services. Interviews were conducted with 17 nurses in various positions in this service. The data were interpreted and analyzed according to interpretive hermeneutic methodology. The authors particularly address the nurses' descriptions of the role of the patient and his or her family members for the provision of home-based care. Cooperative patients and family members represent an important resource for care and can make it possible for nurses to provide services for all the patients on an egalitarian basis and to prioritize those who live alone. However, demanding and resourceful patients and family members may "rule" the service at the expense of other patients who also have legitimate care needs--a practice that the nurses describe as unfair. In this article, the authors discuss how a fair and impartial distribution of common benefits can be achieved without some parties being unjustly treated.