Priorities for continuing education in geriatrics: perceptions among various groups.

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Continuing Education
• Healthcare Professionals

Background:

• Ongoing development of continuing education (CE) programs in geriatrics for nonphysicians.
• A 16-year history of delivering a 48-hour professional CE program in geriatrics.
• Need to identify and prioritize essential training topics for geriatric care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the perceptions of frontline practitioners and geriatrics experts on relevant geriatric training and CE needs.
• To establish a core set of topics based on these perceptions to meet identified needs.
• To identify areas of consensus and divergence in expert and practitioner opinions.

Main Methods:

• Survey administered in spring 2008 to 146 program participants (frontline practitioners) and 66 geriatrics experts.
• Data collected to assess perceptions of the most important topics in geriatric care.
• Comparative analysis of survey responses between participant and expert groups.

Main Results:

• General agreement found between experts and participants on a core set of high-priority geriatric training topics.
• Several specific topics demonstrated sharp differences in perceived importance between the two groups.
• The study identified both consensus and disagreement regarding essential CE needs in geriatrics.

Conclusions:

• A foundational agreement exists on core geriatric education topics for nonphysicians.
• Targeted professional development should address areas where expert and practitioner opinions diverge.
• Future CE program development can be informed by this comparative needs assessment.