When delivering care to adolescents and their parents about sexuality, reproductive health, and homosexuality, I will be sensitive to the needs of both of them. For patients, I would create an atmosphere of trust and assure them that the information shared during the visit will stay confidential even from parents. At the same time, I will advise parents to learn efficient techniques for communicating with their children about sexuality.
According to Santa Maria, Guilamo-Ramos, JemmottDerouin, and Villarruel (2017), such education can help to reduce risky behaviors and decrease the chances of acquiring sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancy. I will focus on abstinence, contraception, common risk factor of rape, and normality of homosexuality.
As for the gender-neutral bathrooms, I am firmly against the matter. Even though I understand that such bathrooms help to protect the rights of LGBTQ, they are associated with increased risk of adverse events (Blumell, Huemmer, and Sternadori, 2019). I believe that the introduction of such bathrooms will be associated with an increased risk of unhealthy sexual behavior and sexual assaults. The matter can be especially harmful to adolescents as gender-neutral bathrooms can become a place for sexual intercourse.
When speaking about sexuality in older adults, I strongly disagree with the notion that “old people are too weak to have sex.” Even though older age is associated with increased risk of multiple chronic conditions, empirical studies show that sex in older age is common (Træen et al., 2017). Moreover, older females are more often satisfied with their bodies than younger females, which leads to increased sexuality. Therefore, it is normal for older adults to have sex.
References
Blumell, L. E., Huemmer, J., & Sternadori, M. (2019). Protecting the ladies: Benevolent sexism, heteronormativity, and partisanship in online discussions of gender-neutral bathrooms. Mass Communication and Society, 22(3), 365-388.
Santa Maria, D., Guilamo-Ramos, V., Jemmott, L., Derouin, A., & Villarruel, A. (2017). Nurses on the Front Lines. AJN, American Journal of Nursing, 117(1), 42-51. Web.
Træen, B., Carvalheira, A., Kvalem, I. L., Štulhofer, A., Janssen, E., Graham, C. A.,… & Enzlin, P. (2017). Sexuality in older adults (65+)—An overview of the recent literature, part 2: Body image and sexual satisfaction. International Journal of Sexual Health, 29(1), 11-21.