The Determination of knowledge level of family physicians for frailty; A Cross-sectional study

Introduction: Frailty syndrome, which affects the quality of life negatively in patients of 65 years old and over, can be observed from physical inactivity to immobility, and can affect cognitive disorders. General symptoms of frailty are; slowing walking speed, involuntary weight loss, decreased appetite, decreased body mass index (BMI), decreased muscle strength, feeling insufficient while doing physical activity, weakness, fatigue, impaired cognitive functions, and memory loss. Fragility is reversible, but if it is not noticed earlier it can progress to immobility or death. Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) is important in detecting a frail elderly. The aim of the study is to determine the knowledge level of family physicians in Erzincan. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. It is aimed to reach at least 80% of family physicians (FPs) employed actively in 73 primary care units in Erzincan. The researchers applied questionnaire face-to-face to the participants. Erzincan Clinical Research Ethics Committee approval was received for the study. SPSS 23 statistics program was used for data analysis. Results: The frailty questionnaire was applied to 58 FPs. Only 12.1% of FPs correctly answered the question of which word first comes to mind for ‘frailty’. The 74.1% (n: 43) of participants did not consider themselves sufficient for CGA, and 70.7% (n: 41) of participants wanted training on CGA. The answer for question if they evaluate the patients for frailty in homecare visits was yes in 38.2%. Conclusion: It can be said that the ‘frailty’ knowledge level of FPs should be increased in Erzincan. In light of the data obtained, it may be suggested to organize “frailty” and CGA trainings for family physicians. Frailty and CGA should be included in undergraduate medical education and continuous trainings of FPs.