I'm not sure how many times I've been to the doctor, or my nurse practitioner, and they ask all kinds of personal questions, so they can check a box on their form (relationship status, drug use, date of last period, etc), then they perform a physical exam (most personal of all!), but then...there is a severe lack of discussion about what all of these have to do with each other (the relationship status question and the physical exam).
The connection is, you, the patient, are in a relationship, you are a sexual being; yet, there is no discussion about sexuality. I'm not talking about a counseling session, but a little more discussion about the relationship itself, even current research or resources, would be helpful.
This is a little personal, but I remember as a young woman that I went in to the GYN for my first-ever appointment, obtained birth control (I had my first "serious" boyfriend), and the doctor NEVER talked to me about being in a sexual relationship. Probably mentioned that we should use condoms to protect against STIs. What a perfect (missed) opportunity for her to talk with me about what I'm possibly feeling in this serious relationship, where to go for help if I need it, what the difference is between a healthy vs. unhealthy/abusive relationship. And on and on. I would hope that doctors now are asking the young women more about their relationships, how they feel about their bodies, etc.
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Susan, I agree!
I'm not sure how many times I've been to the doctor, or my nurse practitioner, and they ask all kinds of personal questions, so they can check a box on their form (relationship status, drug use, date of last period, etc), then they perform a physical exam (most personal of all!), but then...there is a severe lack of discussion about what all of these have to do with each other (the relationship status question and the physical exam).
The connection is, you, the patient, are in a relationship, you are a sexual being; yet, there is no discussion about sexuality. I'm not talking about a counseling session, but a little more discussion about the relationship itself, even current research or resources, would be helpful.
This is a little personal, but I remember as a young woman that I went in to the GYN for my first-ever appointment, obtained birth control (I had my first "serious" boyfriend), and the doctor NEVER talked to me about being in a sexual relationship. Probably mentioned that we should use condoms to protect against STIs. What a perfect (missed) opportunity for her to talk with me about what I'm possibly feeling in this serious relationship, where to go for help if I need it, what the difference is between a healthy vs. unhealthy/abusive relationship. And on and on. I would hope that doctors now are asking the young women more about their relationships, how they feel about their bodies, etc.
March 22, 2008 - 12:50pmThis Comment
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