Pharmacy Students' Attitudes Toward Geriatric Nursing Home Patients

Objective. To determine the attitudes of second-year pharmacy students toward older people in general and geriatric patients in particular after attending an Early Pharmacy Practice Experiences 2 course. Methods. One hundred forty-four second-year pharmacy students completed the Geriatrics Knowledge Test and Attitudes Survey between 2008 and 2010. Results. On 11 of 14 items, most students had a favorable opinion of older people and providing geriatric care (mean >3.0 on a 5-point scale). For example, students believed that treatment of chronically ill elderly patients is not hopeless (4.2 +/- 1.0) and that most older people are pleasant to be with (3.8 +/- 1.0). Gender, age, race/ethnicity, marital status, having children, and rural or non-rural upbringing were not related to the students' attitudes for most items. Conclusion. Although the majority of second-year pharmacy students had favorable attitudes toward older people and geriatric care, the lack of research in this area suggests that further studies are needed.