Geriatric care in Europe - the EUGMS Survey part I: Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Quality of geriatric care depends on institutional resources e.g. hospitals, medical departments engaged in acute medicine, rehabilitation and long term care but especially in quality and quantity of well educated and trained specialists, i.e. “geriatricians”. This survey initiated by the Academic Board of the European Union Geriatric Medicine Society (EUGMS) aimed to give an European overview by mapping the current situation in number and geographical distribution of geriatricians in relation to national demographic data. The discussion focuses on special national aspects including information about the national training tenure circumstances as well as political and historical influences on the geriatric care situation. The need for an European consensus concerning training curriculum is clearly stated, but also the need for fostering geriatric medicine with look on the demographic background, which is very similar in European countries. Last but not least: The survey can function as a benchmark, which every country may use in it's own medical and political environment.