Assessment of Willingness to Work with the Elderly and the Related Factors in Iranian Dental Students

Due to the increase in the aged population and the need to improve their health and quality of life, the demand for social services and health care has increased. The present study e aims to investigate the willingness to work with the elderly and the related factors among Iranian dental students.

This descriptive-analytical study was conducted in 2021. The study population consists of all male and female students in dentistry from the Islamic Azad University, Tehran Dental Branch. Of these, 287 were selected by a purposive sampling method. The Willingness to Work with elderly people scale, with 20 items and 4 subscales, was used for data collection. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the data was collected online. The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software, version 23 using the independent t-test, multiple linear regression analysis, and one-way analysis of variance.

The mean age of students was 23.9±3.807 years, and the mean score of willingness was 51.69±13.004. Having the gerontology course did not have a significant effect on increasing the willingness (P>0.05). The willingness level was significantly different in terms of experience working with the elderly, visiting senior care and rehabilitation centers, attending conferences and workshops about gerontology, and voluntary activities (charities) for the elderly (P<0.001).

The Iranian dental students’ willingness to work with the elderly is not favorable. The students with experience working with the elderly, visiting senior care centers, or attending workshops or conferences on gerontology are more willing to work with the elderly. Therefore, designing educational courses and holding workshops or conferences on gerontology for dental students can be effective in increasing their willingness to work with the elderly.