University of Sussex
Browse
Winter2021_Article_WhatIsMeantByFrailtyInUndergra.pdf (561.6 kB)

What is meant by “frailty” in undergraduate medical education? A national survey of UK medical schools

Download (561.6 kB)
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-10, 00:00 authored by Rebecca WinterRebecca Winter, Muna Al-JawadMuna Al-Jawad, Juliet Wright, Duncan ShrewsburyDuncan Shrewsbury, Harm van MarwijkHarm van Marwijk, Helen Johnson, Thomas LevettThomas Levett
Purpose: All UK medical schools are required to include frailty in their curriculum. The term is open to interpretation and associated with negative perceptions. Understanding and recognising frailty is a prerequisite for consideration of frailty in the treatment decision-making process across clinical specialities. The aim of this survey was to describe how frailty has been interpreted and approached in UK undergraduate medical education and provide examples of educational strategies employed. Methods: All UK medical schools were invited to complete an electronic survey. Schools described educational strategies used to teach and assess frailty and provided frailty-related learning outcomes. Learning Outcomes were grouped into categories and mapped to the domains of Outcomes for Graduates (knowledge, skills and values). Results: 25/34 Medical schools (74%) participated. The interpretation of what frailty is vary widely and the diversity of teaching strategies reflect this. The most common Learning outcomes included as “Frailty” are about the concept of frailty, Comprehensive Geriatric Assessments and Roles of the MDT. Frailty teaching is predominantly opportunistic and occurred within geriatric medicine rotations in all medical schools. Assessments focus on frailty syndromes such as falls and delirium. Conclusion: There is variation regarding how frailty has been interpreted and approached by medical schools. Frailty is represented in an array of teaching and assessment methods, with a lack of constructive alignment to related learning outcomes. Consensus should be agreed as to what frailty means in medical education. Further research is required to explore which frailty-specific educational strategies in undergraduate medical education enhance learning.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

European Geriatric Medicine

ISSN

1878-7649

Publisher

Springer

Volume

12

Page range

355-362

Event location

Switzerland

Department affiliated with

  • Clinical and Experimental Medicine Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2021-06-03

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2021-06-03

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2021-06-03

Usage metrics

    University of Sussex (Publications)

    Categories

    No categories selected

    Licence

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC