Attitudes of Healthcare Workers towards Older People in a Rural Population: A Survey Using the Kogan Scale

With the global trend towards an increasingly ageing population, it is clear that nurses need to be equipped with the knowledge and skills to fulfil significant roles in responding to future health and support needs. This paper reports the results of a survey that aimed to identify and evaluate the attitudes of nurses, healthcare assistants, and nursing students towards older people. The survey was undertaken in a rural county in the Republic of Ireland. It is reassuring that in our study, we found that these healthcare workers hold positive attitudes towards older people. In addition, we found that study to a higher level at university appears to mitigate towards holding more positive attitudes, and this is an important finding in light of the shift towards nursing as an all-graduate profession.

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Student Nurses’ Perceptions About Older People

International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship ◽

10.1515/ijnes-2019-0051 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Sherry Dahlke ◽

Sandra Davidson ◽

Uira Duarte Wisnesky ◽

Maya R. Kalogirou ◽

Vince Salyers ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Learning Strategies ◽

Nursing Program ◽

Ageing Population ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Term Care ◽

Basic Care ◽

Healthcare Needs ◽

Nurses Perceptions

AbstractEducating nursing students about the ageing population is situated within negative societal, heath care and nursing perceptions. A cross-sectional design using Burbank’s perceptions towards older people scale was used to survey students in a pre-licensure nursing program in western Canada. Findings revealed that students’ perceptions about older people were lower in the third year of the nursing program and after four clinical experiences. We suggest that students’ first experiences in long-term care settings, in which they learn to provide basic care to older people, be balanced with experiences of older people in a variety of settings. Such experiences would allow students to develop the knowledge and skill needed to work with an ageing population with complex healthcare needs. More research is needed to better understand students’ experiences and perceptions about where in the program more learning strategies about how to best work with older people would be helpful.

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Role of Assistive Robots in the Care of Older People: Survey Study Among Medical and Nursing Students (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.18003 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Sylwia Łukasik ◽

Sławomir Tobis ◽

Sylwia Kropińska ◽

Aleksandra Suwalska

Keyword(s):

Medical Students ◽

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Survey Study ◽

Future Health ◽

Social Functions ◽

Assistive Robots ◽

Future Health Care ◽

The Right

BACKGROUND Populations are aging at an alarming rate in many countries around the world. There has been not only a decrease in the number of births and an increase in the percentage of older people, but also an increase in the number of people living alone. There is growing demand for specialist medical care and daily care with the number of people who can act as caregivers reducing. The use of assistive robots can, at least partially, solve these problems. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to examine the opinions of future health care professionals (medical and nursing students) regarding the use of assistive robots in the care of older people. METHODS The study was conducted with a group of 178 students from Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland (110 nursing students and 68 medical students), using the Users’ Needs, Requirements, and Abilities Questionnaire. RESULTS The participants of this study believed that assistive robots should, first of all, remind older people to take medication regularly, ensure their safety, monitor their health status and environment, provide cognitive training, and encourage them to maintain physical activity. In the students’ opinion, the robot should not be an older person’s companion but only act as an assistant. Nursing students had significantly higher scores than medical students in several statements concerning everyday use of robots, including reminding about meals (P=.03), monitoring the environment (P=.001), providing advice about a healthy diet (P=.04), monitoring the intake of food and fluids (P=.02), and automatic “switch on” function (P=.02). Nursing students were more focused on the social functions of robots, including encouraging contact with friends (P=.003) and reducing the sense of loneliness and improving mood (P=.008). Medical students were more aware of privacy issues in the statement concerning the possibility of switching off the robot in specific situations (P=.01). CONCLUSIONS Our study revealed a generally positive attitude of future doctors and nurses toward assistive robots, which can have an impact on their acceptance by older adults. In the future, medical professionals could help their patients to choose the right robots (and necessary functions) that are best suited to their needs. However, this would require expanding the curriculum to include the issues of gerontechnology.

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Perceptions of older people in Ireland and Australia about the use of technology to address falls prevention

Ageing and Society ◽

10.1017/s0144686x18000983 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 40 (2) ◽

pp. 369-388

Author(s):

Lynette Mackenzie ◽

Amanda Clifford

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Older People ◽

Technology Acceptance ◽

Information And Communication Technologies ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Falls Prevention ◽

Ageing Population ◽

Future Health ◽

Exercise Interventions ◽

Use Of Technology

AbstractFalls are common events with serious consequences for older people. With an ageing population and increasing health-care costs, information and communication technologies (ICT) will have a potential role in future health-care delivery. However, research on technology acceptance in health care for older people is limited and its application to falls prevention is unknown. The aims of this study were to explore and describe the perceptions of community-dwelling Australian and Irish older people about their current use of technology, and the potential use of technology for falls prevention. Qualitative data were collected from three focus groups conducted in and around Limerick in Ireland, and three in the Sydney area, Australia. A total of 35 older people participated. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the data: (a) perceptions of vulnerability to falls, (b) preferences for exercise interventions, (c) participation in and ownership of technology, and (d) perceptions about applications of technology for falls prevention. As the use of technology is an instrumental activity of daily living, health professionals need to assess the capacity of older people to adopt these technologies, and provide falls prevention interventions to accommodate the technology skills of older people. Some participants were reluctant to embrace technology and barriers to the effective use of technology to assist in preventing falls may conflict with future health service trends.

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Engaging nursing students and older adults through service-learning

Working with Older People ◽

10.1108/wwop-10-2020-0053 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Christine S. Gipson ◽

Julie A. Delello ◽

Rochell R. McWhorter

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Nursing Students ◽

Service Learning ◽

Older People ◽

Cultural Knowledge ◽

Content Type ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

Technological Competency ◽

Prior Experiences ◽

Cultural Skills

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine nursing students’ (n = 18) perceptions of interrelating with older adults to understand how such interactions might improve students’ levels of cultural competence and enhance their future nursing practice. Additionally, the study sought to contribute to a higher level of technological competency in older adults. Design/methodology/approach A basic qualitative study design (Merriam and Tisdell, 2016) was used to direct the data collection and analysis to achieve the aims of this study. Findings Four themes emerged from the data collected based on cultural knowledge, cultural skills, cultural desire and engaging in cross-cultural interactions. Students reflected on how their experiences would help them to interact with older adults in their future nursing practices. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the research is that the exploratory study cannot be generalized for a wider demographic. Also, the students’ prior experiences working with older adults were not considered and their reflections may not have accurately portrayed their true biases. Practical implications Reflection is a valuable practice to help students think through their experiences and is considered a key component of service-learning. In this study, students reflected on how their experiences would help them to interact with older adults in their future nursing practices. Social implications Nursing students who are later used take with them empathy, more sensitivity and positive attitudes toward older people to benefit the nurse-patient relationship with this population. Originality/value This is one of a handful of studies located that pairs nursing students with older people in teaching technology skills through iPad technology.

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Nursing students’ attitudes towards older people and future career choices in Macao-A pilot study

Journal of Nursing Education and Practice ◽

10.5430/jnep.v9n2p10 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. 10

Author(s):

Mei Hua Kerry Hsu ◽

Man Ho Ling

Keyword(s):

Pilot Study ◽

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Career Choices ◽

Small Sample ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Future Career ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

First Choice ◽

Students Attitudes

Background: As global ageing, Macao also faces challenges with regards to an aging population. Not many nursing students are willing to choose gerontological nursing (GN) as a career choice. This pilot study was conducted on a small sample of Macao nursing students to assess nursing students’ attitudes towards older people and their future career choices. Moreover, this pilot study is aimed to validate the survey questionnaire for the further study.Methods: A cross-sectional survey to explore 30 Macao nursing students’ attitudes towards older people and future career choices. Kogan’s attitudes towards older people scale (KAOP) was adopted in this study.Results: About 33.3% nursing students agreed to work in GN after graduation. Only 6.7% participants chose “aged care institute” as their first choice for future career. Participants have higher mean scores of KAOP that indicate more positive attitudes towards older people. “GN practice experience” and “personal preference” are confirmed as contributors for nursing students towards GN in this study.Conclusions: Macao nursing students have positive attitudes towards older people but not many of them would choose GN as future career. This pilot study provided knowledge to current nursing educators and government for the situation among nursing students in Macao.

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Age discrimination in healthcare institutions perceived by seniors and students

Nursing Ethics ◽

10.1177/0969733017718392 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 26 (2) ◽

pp. 443-459 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Beata Dobrowolska ◽

Bernadeta Jędrzejkiewicz ◽

Anna Pilewska-Kozak ◽

Danuta Zarzycka ◽

Barbara Ślusarska ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Old Age ◽

Clinical Education ◽

Age Discrimination ◽

Eastern Region ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

Ethical Approval ◽

Nursing Courses ◽

Medical University

Background: Old age–based discrimination is observed as the most tolerated prejudice in society and has also been witnessed in healthcare institutions. Aims: The aim of this study is to explore age-based discrimination in healthcare institutions as perceived by seniors and students of Medicine and Nursing. Research design: A multi-method study design, by involving a triangulation design. Participants and research context: A purposeful sample of individuals aged 65+ (n = 80) and medical and nursing students (n = 100) in the eastern region of Poland. Ethical considerations: Ethical approval of the research protocol was received from the Ethics Committee at the Medical University of Lublin. Findings: ‘Old age’ was perceived by groups of participants based on three themes: (a) positive, (b) negative and (c) neutral connotations. The negative connotations predominated. The beginning of old age was defined by the metric of age and described by showing the complexity of the ageing process involving subjective, objective and societal aspects. Experience of age discrimination in healthcare institutions was reported by 24 (30%) seniors and witnessed by 47 (47%) students surveyed and for both groups occurred mainly at the hospital level and by physicians. Only 48 students (48%) declared a willingness to work with the older people in the future, and barriers were reported at the personal and professional levels, and also in some visions of older people. Conclusion: The conceptualization of old age as reported by seniors and students mainly carried negative connotations, reflecting the profoundly based stereotypes within society regarding the older people. Seniors have reported being exposed to ageism and have witnessed ageism episodes in HCIs; also, students have faced ageism episodes during their clinical education. There is a need for ethical education within medical and nursing courses to shape positive attitudes towards the older people. A positive vision of ageing should be promoted not only among young people but also among adults and older people to avoid self-stereotyping of older people and seeing old age from negative perspective.

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Attitudes of Medicine and Nursing Students Towards the Sexuality of Older People

European Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/s0924-9338(09)71120-4 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 24 (S1) ◽

pp. 1-1 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

J. Azevedo ◽

A. Palha ◽

M. Esteves ◽

M. Vieira Coelho

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Undergraduate Students ◽

Later Life ◽

Psychiatry Residents ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Aged People ◽

Knowledge And Attitudes ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

Sexuality Study

There is a paucity of research in attitudes of undergraduate students of medicine and nursing regarding sexuality of patients namely the older people. In previous studies we paid attention on staff attitudes of residential homes to aged people in what concerns with sexuality. With the same methodology, in this study it was evaluated the attitudes of undergraduate students of medicine and nursing and resident's on psychiatry towards the sexuality of older people.Design:A descriptive questionnaire survey using the attitudinal part of Aging Sexual Knowledge and Attitudes Scale (ASKAS).Participants and setting:Students of medicine and nursing of Oporto University.We know from previous studies that little experience in the work with older people is predictive of negative attitudes towards sexuality. Nevertheless, in this sample we found a mean ASKAS score of 66 which reflects moderately positive and permissive attitudes toward later life sexuality. Medicine students were more permissive than nursing students (p< 0.01).Conclusions:Undergraduate students and psychiatry residents have positive attitudes toward sexuality of older people. Later life sexuality study should be included in the curriculum of undergraduate formation of doctors and nurses.

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The Moderating Role of Empathy Profiles in the Relationship Between Knowledge About Aging and Attitudes Toward Older Adults Among Nursing Students

Frontiers in Psychology ◽

10.3389/fpsyg.2021.713271 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Gui-Ying Yao ◽

Yan-Yan Luo ◽

Zhi-Min Zhao ◽

Bo Zhu ◽

Min Gao

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Latent Profile Analysis ◽

Chinese Version ◽

Reactivity Index ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

Attitudes Toward Older Adults ◽

Moderating Role

Knowledge about aging (KA) and empathy affect nursing students’ attitudes toward older adults. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon from an integrated, person-centered perspective. The purposes of the present study were (1) to identify empathy profiles based on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) among Chinese nursing students and (2) to explore whether these latent empathy profiles moderate the association between KA and attitudes toward older people. A cross-sectional survey design was used, and a battery of questionnaires – including those on demographic information, the Chinese version of Palmore’s Facts on Aging Quiz (C-FAQ), the Chinese version of Kogan’s Attitude Toward Older People Scale (C-KAOP), and the IRI – was filled in by 622 Chinese nursing students (Mage 21.76; SD = 1.33). The mean total scores on KAOP and C-FAQ were 164.96 ± 18.32 and 10.436 ± 3.015, respectively, indicating relatively positive attitudes toward older people but low KA among Chinese nursing students. Latent profile analysis was used to identify a three-profile solution characterized by distinct levels of four dimensions of empathy, namely average empathy (AE, n = 399), high empathy (HE, n = 42), and low empathy (LE, n = 181). Subsequent linear regression analysis revealed that the LE rather than the HE profile predicted positive attitudes toward older adults. It is worth noting that the LE profile played a remarkable moderating role in associations between KA and negative attitudes toward older adults after controlling for covariant variables. Both the identification of distinct empathy profiles and the interplay between the LE profile and KA are of significance in reducing negative attitudes toward older adults among Chinese nursing students. Nursing educators should combine improving nursing students’ levels of KA and fostering greater empathy to reduce negative attitudes toward older adults. Such training should give priority to nursing students with LE.

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Role of Assistive Robots in the Care of Older People: Survey Study Among Medical and Nursing Students

Journal of Medical Internet Research ◽

10.2196/18003 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (8) ◽

pp. e18003

Author(s):

Sylwia Łukasik ◽

Sławomir Tobis ◽

Sylwia Kropińska ◽

Aleksandra Suwalska

Keyword(s):

Medical Students ◽

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Survey Study ◽

Future Health ◽

Social Functions ◽

Assistive Robots ◽

Future Health Care ◽

The Right

Background Populations are aging at an alarming rate in many countries around the world. There has been not only a decrease in the number of births and an increase in the percentage of older people, but also an increase in the number of people living alone. There is growing demand for specialist medical care and daily care with the number of people who can act as caregivers reducing. The use of assistive robots can, at least partially, solve these problems. Objective The purpose of this study was to examine the opinions of future health care professionals (medical and nursing students) regarding the use of assistive robots in the care of older people. Methods The study was conducted with a group of 178 students from Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland (110 nursing students and 68 medical students), using the Users’ Needs, Requirements, and Abilities Questionnaire. Results The participants of this study believed that assistive robots should, first of all, remind older people to take medication regularly, ensure their safety, monitor their health status and environment, provide cognitive training, and encourage them to maintain physical activity. In the students’ opinion, the robot should not be an older person’s companion but only act as an assistant. Nursing students had significantly higher scores than medical students in several statements concerning everyday use of robots, including reminding about meals (P=.03), monitoring the environment (P=.001), providing advice about a healthy diet (P=.04), monitoring the intake of food and fluids (P=.02), and automatic “switch on” function (P=.02). Nursing students were more focused on the social functions of robots, including encouraging contact with friends (P=.003) and reducing the sense of loneliness and improving mood (P=.008). Medical students were more aware of privacy issues in the statement concerning the possibility of switching off the robot in specific situations (P=.01). Conclusions Our study revealed a generally positive attitude of future doctors and nurses toward assistive robots, which can have an impact on their acceptance by older adults. In the future, medical professionals could help their patients to choose the right robots (and necessary functions) that are best suited to their needs. However, this would require expanding the curriculum to include the issues of gerontechnology.

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