Preparing to Care for an Aging Population: Medical Student Reflections on Their Clinical Mentors Within a New Geriatrics Curriculum

Abstract

Reflective writing techniques such as journaling help provide insights into the process by which medical students are mentored and develop into practicing physicians. The authors sought to analyze medical students' journals regarding their mentored experiences within a new geriatrics curriculum at a U.S. medical school. Thirty preclinical and clinical medical student journalers participated in this project. The authors employed qualitative analytic techniques using an interdisciplinary team process. Three major themes emerged: (a) exposure to clinical mentors challenged medical students' preconceptions regarding older adults and geriatric medicine; (b) students learned new medical knowledge and techniques from observing their mentors; and (c) students provided positive and negative assessments of their mentors. Reflective journaling provides important insights into the process by which medical students draw upon mentored clinical experiences during their training. Such mentorship may be particularly relevant to promoting their interest in geriatrics.

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the student journalers and the community physician mentors at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. The authors also wish to thank the principal investigator of the Reynolds Project at Brown, Dr. Richard Besdine. The authors acknowledge the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation for its support of the medical student journaling project at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.