OB/GYN

Sex education is not limited to strictly the home and schools but also extends to the doctor’s office as well. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Committee on Adolescent Health Care (2020) had the following recommendations and conclusions:

  • Comprehensive sexuality education should be based on medically accurate, evidence-based, and age-appropriate information with the benefits of delaying sexual intercourse while also providing information about normal reproductive development, contraception to prevent unintended pregnancies, and barrier protection to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs).1
  • Comprehensive sexuality education should cover the entire lifespan, beginning in early childhood and continuing through adulthood.2
  • Programs should include both medical and relational information, including information on reproductive development, prevention of STIs, and unintended pregnancy, as well as information on forms of sexual expression, healthy sexual and nonsexual relationships, gender identity and sexual orientation, and questioning, communication, recognizing and preventing sexual violence.3
  • Through the support and assistance of sexuality education, obstetrician-gynecologist can serve parents and communities. Additionally, Obstetrician-gynecologists can develop evidence-based curricula that focus on clear health goals (eg, the prevention of pregnancy and STIs, including human immunodeficiency virus [HIV]), and provide health care that focuses on optimizing sexual and reproductive health and development.4
  • ACOG noted that Obstetrician–gynecologists must work from a bi-generational lens by asking their patients about their adolescents’ reproductive development and sexual education, human papillomavirus vaccination status, and contraceptive needs.5
  • The Role of the Obstetrician-Gynecologist in Sexual Education
    Researchers have found when a responsible adult communicates with adolescents about sexual topics, there is evidence of delayed sexual initiation and increased birth control and condom use.6 With their knowledge, experience, and awareness of a community’s unique challenges, Obstetrician–gynecologists can be a valuable resource for sexuality education programs.7

Additionally, clinicians can encourage patients to engage in positive behaviors to achieve their health goals and discourage unhealthy relationships and behaviors that put patients at high risk of pregnancy and STIs. They also have the opportunity to promote guardians’ involvement in their child’s life, providing education about risk factors, sexuality education, and healthy relationships.8

Special Adolescent Populations

Adolescents with physical and cognitive disabilities should be included in sexuality programs through their schools and communities.
Comprehensive sexuality education should be inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, and transgender individuals and those that have variations in sexual development. Positive sexual and general health outcomes have been associated with a curriculum that emphasizes empowerment and gender equality through engaging learners to question prevailing norms through critical thinking and encouraging adolescents to adopt more egalitarian attitudes and relationships.9

  1. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  2. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  3. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  4. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  5. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  6. Martinez G, Abma J, Copen C. Educating teenagers about sex in the United States. NCHS Data Brief 2010;(44):1–8
  7. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  8. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.
  9. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2016) Comprehensive sexuality education. Committee Opinion No. 678. Obstet Gynecol 2016;128:e227–30.