Geriatric medicine: Specialty Training Interview Questions

The geriatric medicine questions that sit on top of the specialty training core: clinical scenarios, the system and governance questions specific to the specialty, and presentation titles.

Updated 28 October 2026

The structures these questions are marked on

  • SAFER See the patient, Assess systematically with ABCDE, Fix what you can and decide, Escalate with a clear request in SBAR or ISBAR, Review: the patient told, the handover, the documentation and what you would do if the first plan failed. Full guide →
  • The What it is in a sentence, Why it matters with a fact, What it means for this organisation and specialty, What I would do at my level and how I would measure it. Full guide →
  • STAR Situation in a sentence, Task: what you had to do, Action: what you did in the first person, Result: the outcome with a number where there is one. Add Reflection for STARR. Full guide →

Motivation

Point to things you have done rather than feelings you have: tasters, audits, courses, exams, conferences. Name what you will find hard, honestly. Know the curriculum, the stages and the exams, and have an answer for what you would do if unsuccessful this year.

  1. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the consultant colleague in the specialty

    Why geriatric medicine, and what have you done to show you are committed to it?

    Evidence: the rotation and what it confirmed, the frailty or stroke or orthogeriatric experience, the audit, the course, the research. Say what each taught you about the job and the patients.

  2. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical lead

    What do you know about the geriatric medicine curriculum, dual accreditation with internal medicine, and the subspecialty areas?

    Group 1 with the acute take, the length, the areas in stroke, orthogeriatrics, movement disorders, falls and syncope, community geriatrics and end of life care, and the exams. Two accurate sentences, then what will be hardest.

  3. Often askedUsually asked by the consultant colleague in the specialty

    Geriatric medicine is often undervalued by other specialties. How do you respond to that, and why does it matter?

    A measured answer: the specialty's evidence base in comprehensive geriatric assessment, its effect on outcomes and admissions, and why frailty is the defining challenge of the health system. Say what drew you despite the perception.

  4. Often askedUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical lead

    How will you sustain a career with its emotional load and its share of the acute take?

    A real strategy: the meaning in the work, the balance of acute and community, the team, life outside, and what you would do if you noticed the signs of burnout.

Clinical scenario

Go to see the patient, assess with ABCDE, treat what can be treated, escalate early and clearly, and say what you would do afterwards. Assessors are scoring judgement, prioritisation and escalation rather than knowledge; a safe answer that asks for help early beats a clever one that does not.

  1. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical leadSAFER

    An 85 year old is admitted from a care home with a fall, confusion and a fractured neck of femur. Talk us through your approach.

    The comprehensive geriatric assessment from admission: the delirium and its causes, the medical optimisation for surgery within the target time with the orthogeriatric pathway, the analgesia including a block, the medications reviewed, the nutrition and the bone health, the discharge planning started, and the conversation with the family about goals of care.

  2. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the consultant colleague in the specialtySAFER

    A patient with delirium wants to leave the ward and is pulling at their cannula. What do you do?

    Safety for everyone, de escalation first, the cause of the delirium sought and treated, the environment and the family, medication only if the patient is a danger and by the guideline, the capacity assessment and the legal framework for keeping them safe, and the documentation. Say what you would not do.

  3. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical leadSAFER

    A frail 90 year old with pneumonia is not improving and the family want everything done. How do you approach it?

    The clinical reality, the patient's wishes if known, the goals of care conversation with the family led by you with the consultant involved, the ceiling of care and the resuscitation decision documented, and the comfort that will be given. Say how you would handle the family's fear of abandonment.

  4. Often askedUsually asked by the consultant colleague in the specialtySAFER

    A patient presents with recurrent falls and a postural drop. How do you assess and manage them?

    The multifactorial assessment: the history of the falls, the medications especially the antihypertensives and the sedatives, the gait and balance, the cardiovascular causes including syncope, the vision, the environment. The interventions with evidence: medication review, strength and balance training, the bone health. The falls service.

  5. Often askedUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical leadSAFER

    A patient with Parkinson's disease is admitted and cannot swallow their medications. What do you do?

    Time critical medication: the alternatives by the conversion guidance, the nasogastric route or the patch, the pharmacist and the Parkinson's nurse involved, and the recognition that missed doses cause harm. Say what else is in the differential for the swallowing problem.

  6. Often askedUsually asked by the consultant colleague in the specialtySAFER

    A 78 year old presents with a transient ischaemic attack. What do you do?

    The risk assessment, the antiplatelet started now, the imaging and the carotid assessment within the pathway's timescale, the atrial fibrillation sought, the risk factors addressed, and the driving advice. Say what would make you admit rather than see in the clinic.

  7. Often askedUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical leadSAFER

    A patient on the ward develops acute urinary retention and is on five medications that could cause it. What do you do?

    The catheter, the medications reviewed and the culprits stopped, the constipation and the infection sought, the prostate assessed, the trial without catheter planned, and the urology involvement if needed.

System knowledge

Name three current pressures and link each to your specialty and your own experience. Know how your training is governed: the ARCP, the curriculum, the college and the GMC.

  1. Often askedUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical leadSYSTEM

    What are the biggest challenges facing services for older people in the NHS, and how do they affect training?

    Frailty and the acute take, delayed discharges and social care, the care home interface, the community geriatrics shift in the 10 Year Plan, workforce, and the effect on training time. Link each to what you have seen.

Governance, safety and quality

The problem, the measure, what you changed, the result and whether it lasted. Be clear about your own contribution. Know the definitions and be able to say which your project was.

  1. Often askedUsually asked by the clinical director or clinical leadSTARR

    Tell us about an audit or QI project in geriatric medicine and what changed.

    The problem, the standard, the measure, the change, the result, your part. If it was on delirium, falls, medication review or hip fracture, say why it mattered.

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