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. 2019 Apr;28(4):432-443.
doi: 10.1089/jwh.2018.7352. Epub 2019 Feb 4.

Female Sexual Health: Barriers to Optimal Outcomes and a Roadmap for Improved Patient-Clinician Communications

Sheryl A Kingsberg  1 , Jonathan Schaffir  2 , Brooke M Faught  3 , JoAnn V Pinkerton  4 , Sharon J Parish  5 , Cheryl B Iglesia  6 , Jennifer Gudeman  7 , Julie Krop  7 , James A Simon  8
Affiliations

Female Sexual Health: Barriers to Optimal Outcomes and a Roadmap for Improved Patient-Clinician Communications

Sheryl A Kingsberg et al. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2019 Apr.

Abstract

Background: Although sexual health can be considered a vital sign for overall health, several barriers prevent women from receiving proper medical counseling, support, and/or care for their sexual health needs and concerns.

Methods: Experts in sexual health compiled research and experience on the impediments to women receiving adequate assessment and treatment for their sexual health. Specific solutions and a roadmap for overcoming such barriers and improving patient-clinician communication are presented.

Results: Social stigma around female sexuality remains in Western culture and as a result, women often avoid and/or are embarrassed to discuss their sexual health with their health care professionals (HCPs). Moreover, midlife women are typically unaware or have misconceptions about conditions that may adversely impact their sexual life, such as genitourinary syndrome of menopause and hypoactive sexual desire disorder. Without understanding there may be underlying medical conditions, there is also a lack of awareness that safe and effective treatments are available. Lack of training, tools, time, and limited treatment options impede HCPs from providing women with necessary sexual health support. Educating women, training HCPs, and providing communication tools to HCPs can facilitate effective dialog between patients and HCPs. More specifically, HCPs can be trained to initiate and maintain a sexual health conversation in a manner that is comfortable for women to convey sexual health needs and concerns, and for HCPs to correctly identify, diagnose, and treat the sexual problems of their female patients.

Conclusions: Solutions exist to address the barriers currently impeding patient-clinician interactions around sexual health.

Keywords: communication; education; menopause; sexual health; women.

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Conflict of interest statement

S.A.K. is a consultant for, a scientific advisory board member, or a clinical investigator for AMAG, Dare, Duchesnay, Emotional Brain, Endoceutics, GTx, IVIX, Lupin, Materna, Palatin Technologies, Pfizer, Sermonix, Strategic Scientific Solutions (SST), TherapeuticsMD, and Valeant. J.S. is a clinical investigator for Viveve. B.M.F. served as a consultant for AMAG, Lupin, and Duchesnay; has served on the speaker's bureau for AMAG, Duchesnay, and Valeant; and is currently a clinical investigator for Ipsen Innovations. J.V.P. has received research support (in the past 3 years; paid to the University of Virginia) from TherapeuticsMD. S.J.P. is a member of the advisory board for AMAG; consults for Dare, JDS Therapeutics, Sprout, Strategic Scientific Technologies (SST), TherapeuticsMD and Proctor & Gamble; and has received writing support from AMAG and TherapeuticsMD. C.B.I. reports no disclosures. J.A.S. has served (within the last year) or is currently serving as a consultant/advisor to AbbVie, Allergan Plc, AMAG, Ascend Therapeutics, Azure Biotech, Millendo Therapeutics, Nuelle, Radius Health, Regeneron, Roivant Sciences, Sanofi SA, Sebela, Sermonix, Shionogi, Symbiotec Pharmalab, TherapeuticsMD, and Valeant; has received (within the past year or currently) grant/research support from AbbVie, Allergan Plc, Agile Therapeutics, Bayer Healthcare, New England Research Institute, ObsEva SA, Palatin Technologies, Symbio Research, and TherapeuticsMD; has also served (within the last year or currently) on the speaker's bureaus of Novo Nordisk, Shionogi, and Valeant; and is a stockholder (direct purchase) in Sermonix Pharmaceuticals. J.G. and J.K. are employees of AMAG Pharmaceuticals. AMAG Pharmaceuticals supported the medical writing assistance of Kathleen Ohleth, PhD, CMPP of Precise Publications, LLC.

Figures

<b>FIG. 1.</b>
FIG. 1.
Overlap of female sexual disorders.
<b>FIG. 2.</b>
FIG. 2.
Patient-related and health care provider-related barriers aligned with potential solutions.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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