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Incorporation of Gerontology into Medical Education
Author(s) -
HALL GEORGIA G.,
STARKMAN MONICA N.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1979.tb06060.x
Subject(s) - medicine , curriculum , medical school , geriatrics , medical education , unit (ring theory) , geriatric psychiatry , gerontology , family medicine , psychiatry , psychology , pedagogy , mathematics education
Despite the increasing importance of gerontology to medical practice, it has been difficult to incorporate it into the curriculum of most medical schools. The aim of this project was to explore the feasibility of introducing gerontology into medical education by utilizing the framework of an existing clinical program. A gerontologist used the structure and resources of a Psychiatry Consultation‐Liaison Program for this purpose. Three groups of target trainees were identified: psychiatry residents on their Liaison rotation; junior medical students on their psychiatry clerkship; and medical‐surgical house officers in the general hospital. The objectives were to impart didactic information and to counteract negative attitudes leading to disinterest in evaluating and treating the elderly. The results indicated a positive impact on all three trainee groups, and a diffusion of the gerontologic innovation from the initial locus of a clinical sub‐unit into the medical center and the medical school.