title: [Perspectives of Spanish psychiatrists on the management of dementias: the PsicoDem survey].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Mental health services are not systematically involved in the care of dementias in Spain. Nevertheless, many patients with dementia attend these services. The perspective of psychiatrist as regards this situation has not been evaluated at the national level to date, and it may be of interest to determine their actual involvement and the strategies to foster it.
  
  
  METHODS
  A survey was conducted on 2,000 psychiatrists on a range of mental health care services. Respondents provided socio-demographic data and information about clinical aspects, together with their opinions regarding the management of dementia. Responses were described by their raw frequencies and measures of association for cross-tabulations resulting from selected pairs of questions. Inferences were made by calculating their 95% confidence intervals.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Psychiatrist involvement in the management of dementias was limited, aside from those involved in psycho-geriatric units or nursing homes facilities. However, there were wide, regional differences. Nearly all respondents (81%) were ready to augment their knowledge and skills in the area of dementia. In particular, the insufficient medical education, together with other organizational factors, such as the difficulties in ordering diagnostic tests (i.e. neuroimaging), or prescribing anti-dementia drugs in some regions, were common barriers psychiatrists faced when approaching patients with dementia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Increasing psychiatrist involvement and boosting coordinated efforts with other specialists in a form of integrated care may advance the care of dementias in Spain to a more valuable level.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Psiquiátricas (Fundación M. Josefa Recio, Hermanas Hospitalarias), CIBERSAM-G10, Bilbao, España.
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Martín-Carrasco
authors.affiliation: Área de SNC, Departamento Médico e Innovación en Salud, ESTEVE, Barcelona, España. Electronic address: fjarranz@esteve.es.
authors.forename: Francisco Javier
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Arranz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D019468:Disease Management; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D018697:Nootropic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011570:Psychiatry / Q000193:education; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013030:Spain; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D018697:Nootropic Agents
keywords: Alzheimer disease; Continuing medical education; Demencia; Dementia; Enfermedad de Alzheimer; Evaluación de necesidades; Formación médica continuada; Needs assessment