Geriatric Education Programs for Emergency Department Professionals: A Systematic Review.

Area of Science:

• Geriatric Medicine
• Medical Education
• Emergency Medicine

Background:

• Emergency departments (EDs) frequently encounter older adults with complex needs.
• Effective geriatric care requires specialized knowledge and skills among ED professionals.
• Existing geriatric education programs for ED staff vary in content and delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review geriatric education programs for emergency department (ED) professionals.
• To evaluate program content, teaching methods, learning outcomes, and implementation factors.
• To identify facilitators and barriers to program implementation in ED settings.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of (quasi) experimental studies published between 1990 and April 2018.
• Searched five major biomedical databases for relevant geriatric education programs.
• Synthesized data on study quality, participant demographics, teaching strategies, and Kirkpatrick learning outcomes.

Main Results:

• Nine before-after studies included, primarily involving ED residents, nurses, and physicians.
• Programs ranged from workshops to curricula, often combining didactic and experiential learning.
• Significant improvements were observed in geriatric knowledge; some studies showed impacts on clinical practice (e.g., screening, documentation).

Conclusions:

• Geriatric education programs can improve ED professionals' knowledge and potentially their clinical practice.
• Implementation is facilitated by integrating programs into existing curricula and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• More rigorous evaluations with larger samples and validated outcome measures are necessary to establish program effectiveness definitively.