Are physicians prepared to care for older adults? A scoping review of validated geriatrics knowledge assessment tools in US-based medical education curricula

Background: To determine the preparedness of medical trainees to care for older adults, appropriate assessment tools are needed. There are few validated published tools that measure Geriatrics knowledge with a high degree of reliability, and it is unclear how often they are applied to measure learning outcomes among medical trainees. Objective: We conducted a scoping review of validated Geriatrics knowledge assessment tools for physicians that are available to assess learners’ knowledge of Geriatrics, with a particular interest in tool alignment with the Age-Friendly Health Systems Initiative and the Geriatrics 5 Ms framework (Mobility, Mind, Medications, Multicomplexity, Matters Most), which frame the medical student Geriatrics competencies. Methods: We systematically searched four electronic databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science Core Collection and ERIC) prior to 2023 to identify Geriatrics knowledge assessment tools used to assess the knowledge of physicians in practice and training. Results: Thirty-six studies that used a validated Geriatrics knowledge instrument to assess changes in knowledge and/or skills were selected for final analysis. Fifty percent of studies reported the development and validation of a new instrument. No instruments were based on updated medical student competencies aligned with the Geriatrics 5 Ms. Conclusion: Despite the availability of validated instruments, they do not appear to be commonly used to reflect learning outcomes in the published Geriatrics medical education literature. Additionally, there is significant variation in competencies guiding validated instruments, and currently, no published tools that directly align with the Age-Friendly competencies.