Why should medical students study Social Gerontology?

Abstract

The General Medical Council (GMC) provides a core curriculum for all medical degrees in the UK. However, these guidelines do not provide in-depth, specific learning outcomes for the various medical specialties. Recognising our ageing population, the British Geriatrics Society in 2013 published their own supplementary guidelines to encourage and further direct teaching on Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine in medical school curricula. Although teaching on Geriatric Medicine, a sub-discipline of Gerontology, has reassuringly increased in UK medical schools, there are convincing arguments for greater emphasis to be placed on the teaching of another sub-discipline: Social Gerontology. Considering the skills and knowledge likely to be gained from the teaching of Social Gerontology, in this paper we argue for the greater universal adoption of its teaching. This would help ensure that the doctors of tomorrow are better equipped to manage more successfully and holistically the growing cohort of older patients.

Geriatric medicine learning objectives and entrustable professional activities in undergraduate medical curricula: a scoping review

“…The fact that the basics of ageing and gerontology do not consistently feature within the examined curricula has been shown in previous surveys of undergraduate training [ 36 , 37 ], but may also be related to the very nature of EPAs. The Swiss curriculum [ 28 ] states that it intentionally omitted the scientific foundations of medicine because it focuses on roles, tasks and situations.…”

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

“…Tinker et al made a call for the universal teaching on Social Gerontology in UK medical schools, asserting that this may translate to a higher quality of care for older people, as medical students become more person-centred and empathetic in approach [ 28 ]. In particular, they advocated teaching on demography, sociology of ageing, psychology of ageing and social policy.…”

“…In particular, they advocated teaching on demography, sociology of ageing, psychology of ageing and social policy. They recommended that medical students should appreciate that ageing is highly heterogeneous and influenced by economic and socio-political factors [ 28 ]. Moreover, the psychology of ageing should focus not only on diseases such as dementia but also on resilience, coping strategies and health-seeking behaviours in older age [ 28 ].…”

“…They recommended that medical students should appreciate that ageing is highly heterogeneous and influenced by economic and socio-political factors [ 28 ]. Moreover, the psychology of ageing should focus not only on diseases such as dementia but also on resilience, coping strategies and health-seeking behaviours in older age [ 28 ]. Similarly, Lehmann et al emphasised the concepts of heterogeneity of ageing, resilience with ageing and cohort effects (i.e.…”

Aging With Disability: Populations, Programs, and the New Paradigm An Introduction to the Special Issue

“…Medical geriatricians and those studying antiaging strategies may see aging-related disability as a thing to be prevented, ameliorated, or cured (Hou et al, 2018; Manayi, Saeidnia, Gohari, & Abdollahi, 2014) and, thereby, talk about disability in terms of loss or decline. Social gerontologists, on the contrary, are more likely to describe disability in terms of social and cultural barriers to access and participation (Tinker, Hussain, D’Cruz, Tai, & Zaidman, 2016) and emphasize the need for supports. Policy and health services researchers in both fields are often limited by what is available in health care claims data and national surveys and may define disability in terms of types that merge impairments and restrictions (e.g., hearing, vision, cognition, and mobility [Okoro, Hollis, Cyrus, & Griffin-Blake, 2018]) or a combination of proxies of disability (e.g., self-reported restrictions and use of adaptive equipment [Fan, Strine, Jiles, Berry, & Mokdad, 2009]).…”