Validity and reliability of the Dutch version of the Camberwell Assessment of Need for the Elderly in community-dwelling people with dementia.
BACKGROUND
Tailor-made care in dementia requires an individual needs assessment. The Camberwell Assessment of Need for the Elderly (CANE) was developed to assess needs of older people with mental disorders. In this study the validity and reliability of the Dutch version of the CANE were studied among community-dwelling persons with dementia and their informal carers.


METHODS
Interviews were carried out with 236 people with mild to severe dementia and 322 informal carers; 69 informal carers were interviewed twice. Construct and criterion validity and test-retest reliability of the CANE were studied using data for informal carers. Construct validity was also studied for CANE ratings of people with dementia.


RESULTS
The construct validity of the CANE was good among people with dementia and informal carers. Criterion validity could be studied for 76.9% of the CANE items, and all significant correlations were convergent. Test-retest reliability of the CANE varied from poor to very good and was best on domains where needs were explicit and problems well defined.


CONCLUSIONS
Use of the Dutch version of the CANE among community-dwelling people with dementia and their carers is supported by the study results, with the study showing acceptable construct and criterion validity and test-retest reliability of the CANE.
Department of Psychiatry/Alzheimer Center, EMGO Institute, VU University Medical Center/Stichting Buitenamstel Geestgronden, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Henriëtte G
HG
van der Roest
Franka J M
FJ
Meiland
Hein P J
HP
van Hout
Cees
C
Jonker
Rose-Marie
RM
Dröes
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D003625:Data Collection / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D005852:Geriatric Psychiatry; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000600:supply & distribution; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012931:Social Environment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires