Self- reported and informal caregiver proxy-reported met needs in persons living with dementia are associated with lower health-related quality of life: a dyadic, cross-sectional study

• Published in: Aging & mental health Vol. 28; no. 3; pp. 422 - 426
• Main Authors: Wammes, Joost D., Laws, Holly B., van Hout, Hein P.J, MacNeil Vroomen, Janet L., Monin, Joan K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Routledge 03-03-2024; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Aged; Caregivers; Cross-Sectional Studies; Dementia; Dementia disorders; Dyads; Health status; health-related quality of life; Humans; informal caregivers; Interdependence; introduction; needs; Needs assessment; Observational studies; Older people; Quality of Life; Self Report; the actor-partner interdependence model; needs; health-related quality of life; informal caregivers; introduction; the actor–partner interdependence model; Dementia
• ISSN: 1360-7863; 1364-6915; 1364-6915
• DOI: 10.1080/13607863.2023.2248047

This study examined the dyadic association of self and informal caregiver proxy-reported met needs in persons living with dementia on the health-related quality of life (HRQOL).
A total of 237 persons with dementia and their caregivers were included from a previous observational study. HRQOL was assessed by the EuroQol-5D and the number of met needs by the Camberwell Assessment of Needs for the Elderly. The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model framework was used to analyze the effect of an individual's self or proxy-reported met needs on their own HRQOL (actor effects), and an individual's self or proxy-reported met needs on the other dyad member's HRQOL (partner effects).
The number of self-reported met needs by persons living with dementia was negatively associated with their own HRQOL (actor effect b = −0.200, p < 0.001), and the HRQOL of informal caregivers (partner effect b = −0.114, p = 0.001). The number of proxy-reported met needs by informal caregivers was negatively associated with their own HRQOL (actor effect b = −0.105, p < 0.001) but not the person living with dementia's HRQOL (-0.025, p = 0.375).
Study findings suggest that both self-reported and informal caregiver proxy-reported met needs in persons living with dementia should be considered in research and practice because they have different implications for each dyad members' HRQOL.