Assessment of intern doctors' attitudes towards ageism and related factors: A single-center cross-sectional study

Abstract

BACKGROUND It is well known that ageism, or discrimination against older individuals, is a pervasive issue in healthcare settings, potentially affecting the quality of care provided to this population. In this paper, it was aimed to assess the attitudes of intern doctors toward ageism and to identify the sociodemographic, educational, and experiential factors influencing these attitudes. MATERIAL and METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted among 158 intern doctors at Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine during the 2024–2025 academic year. Data were collected utilizing the Sociodemographic Information Form and the Turkish version of the UCLA Geriatrics Attitudes Scale (UCLA-GA). Multiple linear regression analyses were executed to identify factors associated with UCLA-GA scores. RESULTS The mean total UCLA-GA score of participants was 47.5 ± 4.6, indicating generally positive attitudes toward geriatrics. Intern doctors who expressed a preference to live with their parents in the future showed significantly higher total UCLA-GA scores (β = 1.793, 95% CI: 0.198–3.388, p = 0.028). Additionally, willingness to work in institutions providing elder care services was significantly associated with higher scores in the Medical Care (β = 1.078, 95% CI: 0.255–1.900, p = 0.011) and Resource Distribution (β = 1.057, 95% CI: 0.241–1.873, p = 0.011) subscales. Notably, aging was predominantly associated with negative themes such as illness, dependency, and death. CONCLUSIONS As a result, intern doctors indicated generally positive attitudes toward ageism. Those who preferred to live with their parents in the future exhibited more favorable perceptions of aging, while willingness to work in elder care institutions was associated with higher scores of medical care and resource distribution subscales. Despite these positive perspectives, aging remains largely perceived through negative lenses, such as illness, dependency, and mortality, emphasizing the need for targeted educational interventions to foster a more balanced and nuanced understanding of aging among future healthcare professionals.

Keywords

• KEYWORDS Ageism
• attitude
• intern doctors
• UCLA-GA

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