What is Sexual Health for Men… And Why Does it Matter_
Overview
In a new report, the non-profit research group Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI) issues a call to action to policymakers and the medical community: involve men in reproductive and sexual health care if you truly want to improve public health and reduce the high rates of STDs and unintended pregnancies in the U.S. As a general rule, men are less likely than women to obtain medical services -- especially for sexual health -- during their reproductive years. According to the Urban Institute's recent analyses of the National Survey of Adolescent Males, roughly two-thirds of teen boys and just over half of men in their 20s received a physical in the previous year. But, less than a third of them reported having discussed at least one reproductive health topic with their doctor or nurse.
While reproductive health is a concern for men of all ages, the earliest part of life -- adolescence and early adulthood -- is a time when men are most at risk for STD and HIV infection and unplanned pregnancies. It is also the time when important health-protecting skills, such as using a condom correctly and consistently, are formed and made habit. Yet, there are a number of obstacles that prevent men from getting the sexual and reproductive health services that they need -- including basic information and skills-building as well as medical testing and treatment.
First, men have fewer purely medical needs during their reproductive years than women do. If a woman wants to protect herself from getting pregnant, most of the birth control methods available to her require that she see a health care provider; the main reversible method available to men, the condom, does not. And if she gets pregnant, she needs to see a provider to make sure that she and her baby are healthy; there is no equivalent “healthy dad” exam. At the very least, women are reminded to get their annual gynecological exam, which should include a Pap smear as well as counseling and services related to both contraception and STD/HIV prevention. Men, on the other hand, have no equivalent guidelines to see a provider for sexual or reproductive issues -- much less a yearly reminder to do so. And a special setting where men can go to seek gender- and age-appropriate information and services is often lacking.
The response to the AIDS epidemic began to change that, as public health groups sought to stem the rates of HIV transmission among gay men. Organizations such as the Gay Men’s Health Crisis in New York and the Gay Men’s Health Collective in Berkeley made significant in-roads in reaching the men most at risk for infection. At the same time, some adolescent medicine specialists began expanding their services to include sexual health services for men -- the Young Men’s Clinic in New York City and the Adolescent and Young Adult Medical Clinic in Newark, for example, cater to young, often uninsured, men who have especially high rates of STDs. More recently, these efforts have begun to carry over into sexual and reproductive health programs that have traditionally served women -- a trend that is likely to grow in the near future. Family planning clinics, especially those that receive funding through Title X -- the federal family planning program -- are consciously broadening their outreach to men. This network includes roughly 4,600 clinics nationwide. One, the Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, has created a man-friendly, toll-free hotline, called the “Man Phone,” which answers men’s questions about sexuality from their point of view.
So, what are men’s sexual and reproductive health needs_ Why do they matter_ What are men doing today -- and are they learning about how to protect themselves and their partners_ And how can women make a difference_
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