Discussion
The results from this survey study provide an assessment of dental students’ exposure to formal education on older adulthood and training in EAN. These data highlight students’ level of awareness about the culture of abuse and neglect as well as the legal responsibilities of mandated reporters and indicate areas to prioritize in addressing knowledge gaps during the predoctoral dental curriculum. Most dental students in our study did not have prior instruction in general issues of aging or any training in identifying and responding to elder abuse. It may be that since