Ruyue Shao, Li Tan, Xuemei Zhong, Yu Zhang, Zhuoxin Shi

Zhuoxin Shi

August 31, 2025

Aging process, Elderly, Aging knowledge, Elderly attitudes, Age discrimination.

With the acceleration of global aging process, the demand for medical services for the elderly continues to rise, but there is still a significant shortage in the supply of related services. The attitude of medical related students towards the elderly and their willingness to engage in elderly medical work directly affect the quality of future medical services. This article summarizes the attitudes of medical and health-related students towards the elderly, their mastery of aging knowledge, and their willingness to engage in elderly related work, and explores the key variables that affect these factors. The relationship between attitude, knowledge, and career aspirations is complex, influenced by factors such as educational background, contact experience with the elderly, family structure, and cultural factors. Improving the quality of geriatric medical education, increasing opportunities to interact with the elderly, and breaking down age discrimination stereotypes are important paths to improving students' attitudes towards the elderly and enhancing their career aspirations. This article provides a theoretical basis and practical suggestions for optimizing the cultivation of elderly care abilities among medical students.

© 2025, the Authors. Published by ISCCAC

This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC license