This paper provides insight into the reasons underlying medical students' interest in geriatrics. Semi-structured interviews, informed by attitude theory, were conducted with first-year medical students who indicated that they were not interested in geriatric medicine ( n =10) and those who indicated that they were moderately to very interested in…

Introduction: This study uses a cross-sectional approach in terms of evaluating attitudes toward the elderly among health sciences students. The aim of this study was to measure attitudes among final year pregraduate students of seven health care careers. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted with final year students of medicine (M),…

We redesigned our medical school's Problem-Based Learning (PBL) curriculum to include a substantial increase in required geriatrics content. Innovations included new PBL health care problems and standardized patients (SPs) throughout the first three years and a new required four-week, fourth-year rotation. We used data from the AAMC Medical School…

Objective: There is a critical need for new researchers in psychiatry, including subspecialties such as geriatric psychiatry. Many existing research training programs focus on post-doctoral-level trainees and involve several years of hands-on research with experienced mentors at major universities. Although valuable, such programs have some…

In response to aging patient demographics and a call for increased formal geriatric training in medical schools, a community volunteer geriatric mentor program, Bridging Generations, was developed to shape attitudes of medical students caring for the elderly. The geriatric mentor experience provided students with unique insight into the challenges…

Over the last 20 years, older people have served as teachers for students as part of the formal curriculum in geriatrics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. In recent years, we have supported a more in-depth, longitudinal experience that connects medical students with elders in the community. The program was initiated as a special…

This paper describes development, implementation, and evaluation strategies of a longitudinal geriatric curriculum, the Senior Mentor Program (SMP). The rationale for exposing undergraduate medical students to healthy, community-dwelling older adults is to use the relationship and activities as vehicles for improving knowledge of aging and…

Administered Palmore's Facts on Aging Quizzes I and II and Facts on Aging Mental Health Quiz as single test to third-year medical students before and after their six-week Community Health and Family Medicine clerkship. Clerkship contributed to small improvement in students' knowledge about aged; net bias scores decreased from pretest to posttest.…

This paper provides insight into the reasons underlying medical students' interest in geriatrics. Semi-structured interviews, informed by attitude theory, were conducted with first-year medical students who indicated that they were not interested in geriatric medicine and those who indicated that they were moderately to very interested in…

This descriptive study examined the conceptions and misconceptions students in health professions have regarding older people. The research was conducted in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. The findings revealed that students in health professions, as a whole, demonstrated a high degree of stereotypic misconceptions and poor knowledge about aging and older…

A pilot study is described that was designed to make medical students' early professional contact with the elderly occur with those who are well enough to function as independently living individuals. The students felt the teaching value of the experience equaled or exceeded that of their experience with hospitalized patients. (MLW)

In response to aging patient demographics and a call for increased formal geriatric training in medical schools, a community volunteer geriatric mentor program, Bridging Generations, was developed to shape attitudes of medical students caring for the elderly. The geriatric mentor experience provided students with unique insight into the challenges…

Results are reported from 2 common measures of medical student attitudes toward older adults: Maxwell-Sullivan Attitude Survey (MSAS); and UCLA Geriatrics Attitude Survey (GAS), with students entering the University of South Carolina School of Medicine (USCSM) in the period 2000--2005. A reliability analysis incorporating item means, Cronbach's…

To evaluate whether formally trained geriatricians remain in the field of Geriatrics, and to determine their job satisfaction and perceived quality of life, we surveyed the 107 fellows trained over the last 25 years in one accredited geriatric program. Of the 88 physicians who consented to participate, 75% devoted at least half of their practice…

Examined effect of experimental program in gerontology and geriatrics on third-year medical students. Experimental students (n=45) participated in four group sessions emphasizing psychological, sociodemographic, and physiological aspects of aging and interpersonal communication skills. Participants developed more positive attitudes and…