Stimulators of medical students' interest in geriatric medicine-A Systematic Review.

OBJECTIVES

This study is a systematic review on stimulators of interest in pursuing a geriatric career among medical students in different countries. The review also assessed whether there were differences or similarities based on geographic regions or income categorisations.

METHODS

A 20-year (1998-2018) review of quality primary research articles was conducted (n = 10). For analysis, studies were categorised into low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and high-income countries, based on World Health Organization and World Bank's income grouping for the 2019 fiscal year.

RESULTS

The frequently mentioned stimulators of interest in geriatrics were as follows: cultivating positive attitudes towards older people, participation in geriatric-related interventions and positive experiences during a geriatric training. Lack of published peer-reviewed articles from the LMICs limited the researchers' ability to compare the two income groups.

CONCLUSION

Suggestions to improve future systematic reviews that consider global factors, global participation or any aspect of global inclusion are discussed.