Sexual education for psychiatric residents

Abstract

Objective: The authors seek to promote sexuality curriculum development in departments of psychiatry.

Methods: The authors first focus on educational philosophy about what residents can be taught about sexual topics and then provide numerical and narrative resident evaluation data following a 6-month, half day per week rotation in a sexuality clinic.

Results: Curricula should begin by clarifying the dimensions of individual sexuality, conceptualizing the idea of the couple as the unit for understanding partnered sexual problems, providing opportunities to grow comfortable listening to sexual stories, and approaching etiology using the First Principle of Clinical Sexuality. Departments of psychiatry can evolve new approaches to teaching these topics with diverse methods including seminars, periodic lectures, case conferences, assigned books and journal articles, and discussion of the sexual implications of the patients cared for on other clinical rotations.

Conclusion: More needs to be done nationally to prepare psychiatric residents to assess and treat sexual disorders, concerns, and problems. Curricular efforts need not require a sexuality expert. Existent faculty should be encouraged to develop their institution's initial approach, which inevitably will evolve toward greater comprehensiveness.