A mixed methods evaluation of a 4-week geriatrics curriculum in strengthening knowledge and comfort among orthopaedic surgery residents

BMC Medical Education

Guillaume Limfat¹  Vicky Chau²  Karen Ng²  Adrian C H Chan³  Victoria Chuen⁴  Andrew Perrella⁴ 

[1] Queen’s University School of Medicine, Kingston, Canada;Department of Medicine, Western University Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, London, Canada;Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada;Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Canada;Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada;Department of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine, Saskatoon, Canada;Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada;Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada;

关键词: Orthogeriatrics;    Orthopaedic surgery;    Geriatric Medicine;    Postgraduate medical education;    Curriculum;    Evaluation;    Mixed methods;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12909-021-02716-6

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundIn 2014, the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine implemented a 4-week “Orthogeriatrics” rotation for orthopaedic surgery residents. We sought to assess the rotation’s impact on trainees’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours toward caring for older adults, and explore areas for improvement.MethodsWe used a mixed methods concurrent triangulation design. The Geriatrics Clinical Decision-Making Assessment (GCDMA) and Geriatric Attitudes Scale (GAS) compared knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours between trainees who were or were not exposed to the curriculum. Rotation evaluations and semi-structured interviews with trainees and key informants explored learning experiences and the curriculum’s impact on resident physician growth and development in geriatric competencies.ResultsAmong trainees who completed the GCDMA (n = 19), those exposed to the rotation scored higher in knowledge compared to the unexposed cohort (14.4 ± 2.1 vs. 11.3 ± 2.0, p < 0.01). The following themes emerged from the qualitative analysis of 29 stakeholders: Increased awareness and comfort regarding geriatric medicine competencies, appreciation of the value of orthogeriatric collaboration, and suggestions for curriculum improvement.ConclusionsThese results suggest that the Orthogeriatrics curriculum strengthens knowledge, behaviour, and comfort towards caring for older adults. Our study aims to inform further curriculum development and facilitate dissemination of geriatric education in surgical training programs across Canada and the world.

【 授权许可】

CC BY