A scoping review of the changing landscape of geriatric medicine in undergraduate medical education: curricula, topics and teaching methods

Masud, Tahir; Ogliari, Giulia; Lunt, Eleanor; Blundell, Adrian; Lee Gordon, Adam; Roller-Wirnsberger, Regina; Vassallo, Michael; Mari, Daniela; Kotsani, Marina; Singler, Katrin; Romero-Ortuno, Roman; Cruz-Jentoft, Alfonso J.; Stuck, Andreas E. (2022). A scoping review of the changing landscape of geriatric medicine in undergraduate medical education: curricula, topics and teaching methods. European geriatric medicine, 13(3), pp. 513-528. Springer 10.1007/s41999-021-00595-0

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Purpose The world’s population is ageing. Therefore, every doctor should receive geriatric medicine training during their
undergraduate education. This review aims to summarise recent developments in geriatric medicine that will potentially
inform developments and updating of undergraduate medical curricula for geriatric content.
Methods We systematically searched the electronic databases Ovid Medline, Ovid Embase and Pubmed, from 1st January
2009 to 18th May 2021. We included studies related to (1) undergraduate medical students and (2) geriatric medicine or
ageing or older adults and (3) curriculum or curriculum topics or learning objectives or competencies or teaching methods
or students’ attitudes and (4) published in a scientific journal. No language restrictions were applied.
Results We identified 2503 records and assessed the full texts of 393 records for eligibility with 367 records included in the
thematic analysis. Six major themes emerged: curriculum, topics, teaching methods, teaching settings, medical students’
skills and medical students’ attitudes. New curricula focussed on minimum Geriatrics Competencies, Geriatric Psychiatry
and Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment; vertical integration of Geriatric Medicine into the curriculum has been advocated.
Emerging or evolving topics included delirium, pharmacotherapeutics, healthy ageing and health promotion, and
Telemedicine. Teaching methods emphasised interprofessional education, senior mentor programmes and intergenerational
contact, student journaling and reflective writing, simulation, clinical placements and e-learning. Nursing homes featured
among new teaching settings. Communication skills, empathy and professionalism were highlighted as essential skills for
interacting with older adults.
Conclusion We recommend that future undergraduate medical curricula in Geriatric Medicine should take into account recent
developments described in this paper. In addition to including newly emerged topics and advances in existing topics, different
teaching settings and methods should also be considered. Employing vertical integration throughout the undergraduate course
can usefully supplement learning achieved in a dedicated Geriatric Medicine undergraduate course. Interprofessional education
can improve understanding of the roles of other professionals and improve team-working skills. A focus on improving communication skills and empathy should particularly enable better interaction with older patients. Embedding expected
levels of Geriatric competencies should ensure that medical students have acquired the skills necessary to effectively treat
older patients.

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