Medical students perspectives and consideration of geriatrics for future practice. An exploratory study of a public medical school in Ghana

ABSTRACT

Ghana has one of the fastest growing aging populations in sub-Sahara Africa, but little is known about the geriatric workforce. A sample of 12 medical students in one Ghanaian public university participated in an exploratory qualitative study to share their perspectives on specialty choices in Ghana, interest in working with older patients, and their consideration of geriatrics for future practice. The findings revealed limited knowledge of geriatrics as well as low interest in its selection as a specialty for future practice. These were attributable to multi-faceted factors, including the lack of both exposure to geriatric medicine and geriatrics-focused training for students in this institution. It is critical that geriatric education be prioritized and incorporated in medical schools to nurture students’ interest and future consideration of the specialty. This will help bolster the number of geriatric-oriented physicians and secure specialized care for the aging population.

KEYWORDS:

• Geriatric interests
• specialty choices
• geriatric education
• geriatric consideration

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to send our sincerest gratitude to Professor Daniel Ansong (BSc MB ChB MSc FWACP FGCP Dip LTA (Liv)), Dean of the School of Medical Science - Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (SMS-KNUST) and Deputy Director for the Research and Development Unit (Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH)) for his professional support, insights and expertise that were very beneficial to the success of this study. We also thank all the staff and volunteers at the Research and Development Unit at KATH for their assistance during the data collection phase. We would also like to acknowledge the CHRPE, SMS-KNUST for granting the researchers the permission to conduct this study in their institution.

Finally, we would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this study in one way or the other. Mention can be made of Dr. Isaac Karikari, University of North Dakota Department of Social Work; Ms. Joyce Authur, Indiana University School of Public Health; Dr. Clara Nkyi Asamoah Dawson, KATH; Dr. Obed Ofori Nyarko, KATH; Mr. Dominc Awuah, KATH School of Nursing and Ms. Mercy Amankwah, Department of Mathematics, KNUST.

Conflict of Interest

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, [GK], upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

No grant funding was used to support this study.