[Unmet needs of family dementia caregivers of persons with dementia : Primary medical care].

BACKGROUND: Results of current research studies revealed that providing informal care for people with dementia (PwD) is associated with caregivers' burden and a variety of health impairments. In order to provide optimal support for family caregivers of PwD, general practitioners and specialists should be able to identify caregivers' unmet needs in primary care.

OBJECTIVES: The present article provides an overview of unmet needs of family caregivers that are relevant for general practitioners as well as specialists in neurology, psychiatry, psychotherapy and psychosomatics.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: The present overview is based on current reviews on unmet needs of caregivers of PwD and on results of the general practitioner-based, cluster-randomized controlled intervention trial DelpHi-MV (Life- and person-centred help in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany; Identifier: NCT01401582).

RESULTS: The article provides an overview of unmet needs of family caregivers for PwD, especially in the domains of social integration, psychological and physical health, legal and financial issues, as well as available and valid measurements.

DISCUSSION: The article illustrates the importance and the possibilities for general practitioners and specialists to identify caregivers' unmet needs. The question to what extent unmet needs' assessments for family caregivers of PwD could be implemented and financed in routine care is still under debate.