title: Pre-Clerkship Observerships to Increase Early Exposure to Geriatric Medicine.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To foster interest in geriatric care, the Queen's Geriatrics Interest Group (QGIG) collaborated with the Division of Geriatric Medicine to arrange a Geriatrics Pre-Clerkship Observership Program.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-two pre-clerkship medical students participated in the program between October 2013 and May 2014. Participants were paired with a resident and/or attending physician for a four-hour weekend observership on an inpatient geriatric rehabilitation unit. The program was assessed using: (1) internally developed Likert scales assessing student's experiences and interest in geriatric medicine before and after the observership; (2) University of California Los Angeles-Geriatric Attitudes Scale (UCLA-GAS); and (3) narrative feedback.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All participants found the process of setting up the observership easy. Some 72.7% described the observership experience as leading to positive changes in their attitude toward geriatric medicine and 54.5% felt that it stimulated their interest in the specialty. No statistically significant change in UCLA-GAS scores was detected (mean score pre- versus post-observership: 3.5 ± 0.5 versus 3.7 ± 0.4; p=.35). All participants agreed that the program should continue, and 90% stated that they would participate again.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The observership program was positively received by students. Structured pre-clerkship observerships may be a feasible method for increasing exposure to geriatric medicine.
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON;
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: You
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON;
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON;
authors.forename: Victoria Y Y
authors.initials: VY
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON;
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Astell
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON.
authors.forename: Sudeep S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Gill
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON.
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Frank
keywords: attitude; geriatrics; intervention; undergraduate medical education