The growth of gerontology and geriatrics in Mexico: Past, present, and future

ABSTRACT

Life expectancy is increasing in Mexico, creating new opportunities and challenges in different areas, including gerontology and geriatric education and research. Although in the European Union there are more than 3,000 institutions that focus on aging research, in Latin America there are only 250 programs where theoretical and practical knowledge is taught. In Mexico, the number of institutions that offer gerontology and geriatric education is relatively small. One of the major concerns is that Mexico is not adequately prepared to optimally deal with the aging of its population. Thus, the main challenge that Mexico faces is to train practitioners, researchers, and policy makers to be able to respond to the aging priorities of this country. The goal of this review is to investigate the literature regarding 60 years in the fields of gerontology and geriatrics in Mexico. Even when programs have evolved within the past decades, there are some challenges to gerontological and geriatric education and aging research in Mexico. The implications for Mexico are discussed, as well as opportunities for moving these fields forward.

KEYWORDS:

• Geriatrics in Mexico
• gerontology in Mexico
• growth of geriatrics in Mexico
• growth of gerontology in Mexico

Funding

This project was supported by grant number T32HS000011 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Additional information

Funding

This project was supported by grant number T32HS000011 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.