Þegar heimilislæknirinn klárar heimavitjunina, annast aðstandandinn lyfjaskömmtunina.

Þegar means when. It introduces a subordinate clause: Þegar heimilislæknirinn klárar heimavitjunina = when the family doctor finishes the home visit.

In this sentence it sets up the time relationship for the main clause. Depending on context, þegar can mean a specific when or a more general whenever.

This is a very common Icelandic word-order pattern. When a sentence begins with something other than the subject, the finite verb usually comes next.

Here, the whole Þegar... clause comes first, so the main clause follows the V2 pattern:

Þegar heimilislæknirinn klárar heimavitjunina, annast aðstandandinn lyfjaskömmtunina.

If the main clause stood alone, you could say:

Aðstandandinn annast lyfjaskömmtunina.

So the changed order is caused by the fronted Þegar... clause.

Because Icelandic normally separates a subordinate clause from the main clause with a comma.

So:

• Þegar heimilislæknirinn klárar heimavitjunina = subordinate clause
• annast aðstandandinn lyfjaskömmtunina = main clause

This comma is more expected in Icelandic than it often is in everyday English.

In Icelandic, the definite article is often attached to the end of the noun instead of written as a separate word.

So:

• heimilislæknirinn = the family doctor
• heimavitjunina = the home visit
• aðstandandinn = the relative / the caregiver
• lyfjaskömmtunina = the medication dosing

Those endings like -inn and -ina are doing the job that the does in English.

The subjects are in the nominative, and the direct objects are in the accusative.

In this sentence:

• heimilislæknirinn: nominative singular, because it is the subject of klárar
• heimavitjunina: accusative singular, because it is the object of klárar
• aðstandandinn: nominative singular, because it is the subject of annast
• lyfjaskömmtunina: accusative singular, because it is the object of annast

So the basic subject-object pattern is very normal, even if the word order looks less English-like.

Yes. Annast is one of the Icelandic -st verbs, often called middle-voice verbs.

For these verbs, the present singular form often stays the same as annast, so with a third-person singular subject you still get:

aðstandandinn annast ...

A learner may expect something like an extra ending for he/she, but Icelandic does not work like English here. The -st is part of the verb itself.

Annast means something like take care of, handle, manage, or be responsible for.

In this sentence, it suggests responsibility for the medication dosing or medication management. It often sounds a bit more formal or administrative than everyday sjá um, though both can sometimes be translated as take care of.

Aðstandandi is a useful but slightly broad word. It can mean:

• a close relative
• next of kin
• a family member
• sometimes a caregiver or person closely connected to the patient

So it is not always just relative in the narrow sense. In medical or care contexts, it often means the person close to the patient who is involved in their care.

Yes. Klára is a very common verb meaning finish or complete.

So heimilislæknirinn klárar heimavitjunina is a natural way to say the family doctor finishes the home visit. A more formal verb like lýkur also exists, but klára is extremely common in everyday Icelandic.

Yes. Icelandic uses compounds very heavily, much more freely than English does.

Here are the main ones:

• heimilislæknir = heimilis

  • læknir
    literally something like household/family doctor, meaning GP or family doctor

• heimavitjun = heima

  • vitjun
    home visit

• lyfjaskömmtun = lyfja

  • skömmtun
    literally medication dosing/dispensing

Learning to spot the parts of compounds is a big help when reading Icelandic.

A good English approximation is:

• Þ = th in thing
• ð = th in this

So:

• Þegar starts with the thing sound
• aðstandandinn contains the this sound in að

Also, Icelandic stress usually falls on the first syllable, so both words are stressed at the beginning.

Most likely it describes a routine or standard sequence: when the family doctor finishes the home visit, the caregiver handles the medication dosing.

Icelandic present tense is often used for habitual actions, procedures, and general statements. So even though the verbs are in the present, the meaning can be broader than a single event happening right now.