Evaluating The Usefulness Of Training In Psychogeriatrics

A training programme in psychogeriatrics was run for 51 primary health care doctors, nurses and social workers split into two groups for training in two formats. One group was a patient-case group and the other a lecture group. The participants were interviewed 2-4 months after the course and the material analysed by the phenomenographic method. The main result of the training for both groups, from the trainees' point of view, was an enhanced experience of psychogeriatric work and a more creative application of preexisting professional knowledge. No differences in outcome were detected between the groups. Problems in achieving effective training and training evaluation are discussed.