Geriatrics Interclerkship

Geriatrics Interclerkship
University of Massachusetts Medical School
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Product ID: 18691

Abstract: 

After a morning of didactic sessions (large group and small group selectives) on a variety of geriatric topics, all third year medical students and participating graduate nursing students spend an afternoon at an assisted living site and conduct a life history and functional assessment during a one-on-one interview with an elder. Geriatrics clinical practitioners and assisted living staff co-facilitate small group discussions of the student experiences. 

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Educational objectives: 

To expose students to selected issues (e.g. common geriatric syndromes, gait and balance, geriatric prescribing, delirium, dementia and depression, financing of care, sexual health, supervised living facilities, team approach to care) concerning care of the elderly. Students will conduct a life history and selected clinical assessment with elders during a visit to an area assisted living site.

Learners should be able to:

  1. Have a positive view of working with and caring for the elderly.
  2. Learn the demographics of aging in the United States.
  3. Be able to discuss the physiologic changes that occur with aging.
  4. Become familiar with the use of geriatric assessment tools.
  5. Become familiar with common geriatric clinical syndromes including fall, incontinence, polypharmacy, confusion.
  6. Practice using standardized geriatric assessment tools.
  7. Gain an appreciation for the variety of supervised living settings available to the elderly.
  8. Gain an appreciation for the team of caregivers for the elderly and the role and contribution of each team member.
  9. Conduct a social and medical history on an elderly person.
  10. Perform a functional assessment using standardized assessment tools.
Additional information/Special implementation requirements or guidelines: 

100 students at an assisted living site.

Initial implementation of the curriculum can be labor intensive, as the following tasks need to be completed:

  1. Identify local assisted-living sites able to (a) participate and (b) host up to 25 students.
  2. Work with enrolled sites to identify elders able to participate one-on-one with a student.
  3. Train a small group of clinical and assisted living staff facilitators prior to interclerkship.
  4. Organize students going off campus for afternoon sessions with elders and small groups.

Subsequent years are significantly less time intensive.


For more detailed information about the geriatrics educational program at University of Massachusetts Medical School, please contact Mary Zanetti at (508)856-6009.

Date posted: 
Sun, 01/01/2006
Date last updated: 
Thu, 10/29/2009
CME credits available: 
No
Has this product been peer reviewed?: 
No
ACGME competency checklist: 
Learning resource types: 
Authors: 
Alice Bonner
Gerry Gleich
Sarah McGee
Creative Commons License: 
CC BY-NC-SA
Conflict of Interest Guidelines: 
I have NO financial relationships to disclose.
NLM Citation:
Bonner, A, Gleich, G and McGee, S. Geriatrics Interclerkship. POGOe - Portal of Geriatric Online Education; 2006 Available from: http://www.pogoe.org/productid/18691
APA Citation:
Bonner, A, Gleich, G and McGee, S. (2006). Geriatrics Interclerkship. POGOe - Portal of Geriatric Online Education. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from http://www.pogoe.org/productid/18691