This article describes how Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) principles have been used in the development and support of a Geriatric Medicine Clerkship for fourth-year medical students. Among these principles, consumer orientation, repeated evaluation of clerkship components, and improvement through a team approach are central to the basic pedagogy of the course. The clerk ship has many educational components including lectures, community agency visits, clinical work in a nursing home, interviews with care givers, home visits and geriatric rehabilitation assessments. CQI principles set the framework for the evaluation and improvement of all these elements. The incorporation of students, faculty and the other teaching professionals into the CQI process facilitates a teamwork understanding of older patient care, and a commitment to the interdisciplinary teaching of geriatric medicine. © 1996, The Haworth Press. All rights reserved.
