Background: Good access to primary care is central to health and treatment of illnesses in old age. The older population, adults aged 65 years or older, is a diverse group of individuals who exhibit significant variations in their health conditions and longevity. Hence, it is essential to tailor primary care practice to their individual needs. For most elderly in Sweden, registered nurses in primary care are their first point of contact with healthcare services. Therefore, we will explore elderly patients’ expectations and experiences in primary care consultations with nurses.

Methods: An observational study with older adults in primary care will be performed by recording and analysing real-life nurse-patient consultations.

Findings:  From 150 audio-recorded nurse-patient consultations, collected in 2023/2024, the consultations with older patients will be further investigated in this PhD project with a focus on:

1.

What communication aspects do older patients report as important based on their expectations and experiences of primary care nurse consultations assessed with the QUOTE-COMM (Quality Of communication Through the patients' Eyes) questionnaire.

2.

Older adults’ involvement in primary care consultations with nurses by coding the audio recordings with the OPTION 5.

3.

Health information and advice to older adults in primary care nurse visits by analysing the audio qualitatively.

The methods used for this communication research on older adults-nurse consultations will be further discussed.

Discussion: The number of studies on real-life nurse-patient consultations in primary care, specifically with older adults, is limited. This points to a scarcity of insights in the field of communication in older nurse-patient consultations in primary care. There is a need for research to gain a deeper understanding of nurses’ communication strategies and the way they involve older patients in their care. Such insight is needed to continue to provide person-centered care for the steadily increasing numbers of older patients who seek primary care.