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Candidates for the Certificate of Added Qualifications in Geriatric Medicine; Who, Why, and When?
Author(s) -
Reuben David B.,
Bradley Thomas B.,
Zwanziger Jack,
Hirsch Susan H.,
Beck John C.
Publication year - 1990
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.1532-5415.1990.tb03551.x
Subject(s) - medicine , certificate , geriatrics , medline , family medicine , medical education , gerontology , psychiatry , algorithm , computer science , political science , law
We surveyed physicians who took the examination for certification for Added Qualifications in Geriatric Medicine, physicians who only inquired about the examination, and physicians who expressed no interest in the examination to learn about practice characteristics of those who took the examination and their reasons for taking it. Based on a 72% response rate, we were able to demonstrate that those who took the examination took care of an older population of patients and disproportionately more of the oldest‐old. These physicians were more likely to report the care of older people to be a professional focus and, in internal medicine, were more likely to have had formal training in geriatrics. Their reasons for taking the examination were primarily to obtain credentials but also frequently to improve their ability to care for older people. Nearly two‐thirds of those who had inquired about the exam but did not take it in 1988 plan to do so at a later date.