I'm writing a short story set roughly in the 1930s (though the exact year is flexible), and in one section there's a bit of emergency home surgery (something being removed from a wound). I'm wondering what kind of painkillers or other basic medication they might have available, if any?
To be more specific, they're a relatively poor, rural family. The location is Stokmarknes in Norway, although if people don't know the particular access to medicines of that region, I'm happy to presume it'll be similar to other mainland European (particularly Scandinavian) nations at that time.
It would also help to know the attitude towards painkillers. Even if they were available, how extreme did something have to be before they were used?
Not historian, but have worked in rural Norwegian pharmacies going back 50 years.
People tended to use a small number of remedies, and they were used for all kinds of ailments. Their first choice for pain would be a Norwegian brand aspirin called "Globoid" that came on the market in 1913. Google it.
It's actually a pretty effective drug, but it was famous for causing stomach ulcers. It's no longer available.
Another choice would be Hoffman's dråper (a liquid containing ether (25%) and pure alcohol (75%)), that was diluted and drunk, or dripped on a sugar cube and eaten, to ease pain.
Doctor's could prescribe tinctures containing opium, but that would be for seriously sick people. Doctor's visit were not that common. Doctors were few and often a hefty trip away. Anyway, in those days doctors had their own favourite concoctions that they would prescribe, and the local pharmacy make. It could be pills made to order, or tinctures mixed. Exactly what was available of active ingredients at a particular point in time is not that easy to find out. Opium would be, as would morphine and probably codein.
People did stock up on a few of these remedies, and would use them. Painkillers has not the same bad connotations in Norway that have never had any history of abuse. Also really strong medicines have never been dished out easily. It would be for terminal cancer patients only.
As for home surgery: ether was available over the counter in Norwegian pharmacies. But you could only buy one small bottle at a time. Whether anyone would actually try to use it for a "home surgery", that I don't know. But it wouldn't be that far fetched.