Nutrition education on malnutrition in older adults in European medical schools: need for improvement?

Abstract

Purpose Malnutrition is a condition which is highly prevalent, especially in older persons. Physicians play an important role in multidisciplinary nutritional management, but often feel inadequately prepared to provide nutritional information/therapy to their patients. The aim of this study was to gather information on curricular content on malnutrition in older persons in basic study programs for medical doctors. Methods We selected a cross-sectional study design and used a Web-based online survey. We emailed the Web link to those persons responsible for curriculum development at 310 medical schools in 31 European countries. Results A total of 26 (8.4%) medical schools in 12 European countries completed the questionnaire. The topic of malnutrition in older adults was included as part of the medical students' curricula at 50.0% (13 out of 26) of the participating institutions. Most commonly topics taught in the institutions were causes of malnutrition (13, 50%), assessment of malnutrition (13, 50%) and consequences of malnutrition (12, 46.2%). The topic of malnutrition screening was addressed in nine (35%) of the institutions. Conclusions Based on our results, we strongly recommend including the topic of malnutrition in older adults in the undergraduate curricula of medical students in Europe. A special focus should be placed on multidisciplinary cooperation. Integrative teaching that targets all professional groups could be one option. Initiatives need to be carried out to create a higher level of awareness and promote improvements in nutrition education for medical doctors.

Supporting nutrition in frail older people: a qualitative study exploring views of primary care and community health professionals

“…26,29 Malnutrition training is not currently included in nutrition courses taught at nearly 30% of European educational institutions for nurses. 30 A Delphi study among Dutch GPs showed that the top three nutrition topics were diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolaemia, and obesity, whereas nutrition specific to older people ranked as lower priority. 31 This reflects the historical focus in medical training where nutrition education has been traditionally used for the prevention of cardiovascular disease.…”

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

“…Malnutrition in older adults has a multifactorial aetiology, is highly prevalent and associated with reduced quality of life and an increased mortality risk; yet, it can be prevented and treated through nutritional therapy [ 25 ]. In most European countries, doctors are responsible for prescribing nutritional therapy and referring older adults to dieticians [ 25 ]. Yet, only a few European medical schools include nutrition in later life in undergraduate medical curricula [ 25 ].…”

“…In most European countries, doctors are responsible for prescribing nutritional therapy and referring older adults to dieticians [ 25 ]. Yet, only a few European medical schools include nutrition in later life in undergraduate medical curricula [ 25 ]. Teaching on causes, assessment and consequences of malnutrition has been more frequently reported than that of perioperative nutrition or nutrition in intensive care units [ 25 ].…”

Health care for older adults in Europe: how has it evolved and what are the challenges?

“…Given that physicians of all specialties, with the exception of paediatrics, are involved in the treatment of care of older patients, it has been recognised that geriatric medicine should not be part of postgraduate training for specialty geriatricians alone, but should be part of undergraduate medical training for all future physicians. Several recent reviews demonstrate that there is still need for improvement, with key geriatric topics missing in many undergraduate curricula across Europe [ 40–42 ]. As an initial success, a European-wide consensus has been achieved for minimum requirements in undergraduate medical training [ 43 ].…”