A standardized patient program in a mandatory geriatrics clerkship for medical students

This article describes the development and implementation of a new standardized patient program in a required geriatrics clinical clerkship for fourth-year medical students. A student survey was also conducted to provide evaluations of the program and to determine the frequency with which students' clinical skills are directly evaluated by faculty. Thirty-six percent reported never having been observed while obtaining a history and 24% having been observed only once; 26% had never been observed while completing a physical examination and 39% had been observed only once. The implementation of a standardized patient program provided students with direct feedback on their clinical skills and was rated positively, (good, very good, or outstanding) by 76% of the students.