Geriatric Workshop Boosts Knowledge, Interprofessionalism in Med Students

A 4-hour geriatric workshop for second-year medical students resulted in significant improvement in perceptions of working as an interprofessional team member as well as confidence in performing geriatric assessments, according to a study published in the Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development. 

“To our knowledge, this research study is the first to design and evaluate an interprofessional geriatric workshop in pre-clerkship medical students that integrated pharmacy concepts, including the Beers Criteria,” wrote researchers from the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University. “As the literature has indicated, an interprofessional team approach is crucial for patient-centered care that provides continuity throughout the stages of aging.” 

The interprofessional geriatric workshop introduced 186 second-year medical students to a variety of clinical skills and concepts in geriatric care, such as activities of daily living, geriatric physical assessment, end-of-life discussions, Beers Criteria about prescribing medications, and home health assessment.

Among 178 students who completed the Perceptions of Interprofessional Clinical Education–Revised survey before and after the workshop, perceptions on the value of interprofessional education increased significantly despite already high baseline values, according to the study. Meanwhile, among 111 students who completed a knowledge assessment before and after the workshop, researchers identified significant gains in geriatric concepts.  

“Our study demonstrates an increase in geriatrics knowledge and efficiency in identifying drug-related problems in older adults,” researchers wrote. “In addition, second-year medical students perceived themselves as having effective skills to perform an initial evaluation, functional assessment, lead an end-of-life discussion, and perform a home health visit for older adult patients.” 

—Jolynn Tumolo

Reference:

Jirau-Rosaly W, Brown SP, Wood EA, Rockich-Winston N. Integrating an Interprofessional Geriatric Active Learning Workshop Into Undergraduate Medical Curriculum. J Med Educ Curric Dev. 2020;7:2382120520923680. Published 2020 Jun 3. doi:10.1177/2382120520923680