[Health care in dementia: satisfaction and needs of the caregiver]

Abstract

Introduction: Primary care (PC) and general neurology clinics (NC) assume the leading role in the health care of patients with dementia. There are hardly any studies on the satisfaction of the caregiver at these settings of health care.

Methods: A questionnaire was designed and distributed to 75 caregivers of patients with dementia who were reviewed in an NC and who had been referred from PC. The questionnaire included questions associated with the care, the use of services, and satisfaction. Sociodemographic and clinical variables were also collected. The results of the questionnaire are described and a simple correlation analysis (Spearman r) was performed to determine the factors associated with satisfaction.

Results: The majority of carers were sons or daughters (60%) or spouses (31%), of which 73% were women. The service most used was home help (36%), but 41% of patients had no services available. Satisfaction was high (84% quite or very satisfied with PC, 97% quite or very satisfied with the NC, P<.01). A greater number of years giving care was associated with a lower satisfaction with PC ((r=-0.37, P<.005), while institutionalisation was associated with a lower satisfaction with the NC (r=-0.30, P<.01).

Conclusions: In a context of a scarcity of resources, the satisfaction of the caregivers of patients with dementia, as regards health care, was high, possibly due to the motivation of the health professionals and the positive attitude of the caregivers themselves.