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Changes in medical student and doctor attitudes toward older adults after an intervention: a systematic review

Samra, Rajvinder; Griffiths, Amanda; Cox, Tom; Conroy, Simon; Knight, Alec

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Authors

Rajvinder Samra

Amanda Griffiths

THOMAS COX T.Cox@nottingham.ac.uk
Assistant Professor

Simon Conroy

Alec Knight



Abstract

Research investigating the effects of attitude-focused interventions on doctors' and medical students' attitudes toward older adults has produced mixed results. The objective of this systematic review was to determine whether factors pertaining to study design and quality might provide some explanation of this inconclusive picture. Articles were judged of interest if they reported doctors' or medicals students' attitude scores before and after a geriatric-focused intervention. Articles that did not report the measure used, mean scores, or inferential statistics were excluded. Twenty-seven databases, including Medline, PsychInfo, and Embase, were searched through April 2011 using a systematic search strategy. After assessment and extraction, 27 studies met the eligibility criteria for this review. These studies demonstrated inconsistent results; 14 appeared successful in effecting positive attitude change toward older adults after an intervention, and 13 appeared unsuccessful. Attitude change results differed in line with the content of the intervention. Of the 27 studies, 11 interventions contained solely knowledge-building content. Three of these studies demonstrated positive changes in doctors' or medical students' attitudes toward older adults after the intervention. The remaining 16 interventions incorporated an empathy-building component, such as an aging simulation exercise or contact with a healthy older adult. Of these, 11 successfully demonstrated positive attitude change after the intervention. The inclusion of an empathy-building task in an intervention appears to be associated with positive attitude change in medical students' and doctors' attitudes toward older adults.

Citation

Samra, R., Griffiths, A., Cox, T., Conroy, S., & Knight, A. (2013). Changes in medical student and doctor attitudes toward older adults after an intervention: a systematic review. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 61(7), https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.12312

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Jul 1, 2013
Deposit Date Apr 1, 2014
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
Print ISSN 0002-8614
Electronic ISSN 0002-8614
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 61
Issue 7
DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.12312
Keywords Doctor, Medical student, Attitude, Intervention, Older adult
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1001799
Publisher URL http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jgs.12312/abstract

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