[Difficulties, coping strategies and satisfactions in family caregivers of people with Alzheimer's disease].

Supporting family carers is likely to remain at the forefront of community care policy in dementia care for the foreseeable future. However, despite extensive research in the area, there is little evidence for the effectiveness of current interventions. Focus being placed almost exclusively on the caregivers' burden, at the expense of skills they develop and of satisfactions they experience, partly explains such an impasse. The aim of this study was to use Nolan's approach and methodology for a holistic assessment of a sample of French carers'needs (N  = 74). Our study constitutes a first step toward a translation and validation of the Carers Assessment of Difficulties Index, Carers Assessment of Managing Index, and the Carers Assessment of Satisfactions Index (CADI-CAMI-CASI). It describes how carers manage the difficulties of the caring situation and what satisfactions they may find in their role. Our results should encourage larger studies aimed at validating Nolan's methodology, as well as defining and promoting professional efficient interventions as they are based on a partnership that allows caregivers to define themselves "what works" and what is gratifying.