Evaluating a Sexual Health Patient Education Resource

This article shares the findings of an evaluation of a patient teaching resource for sexual health entitled Everything Nobody Tells You About Cancer Treatment and Your Sex Life: From A to Z, which was accomplished through systematic conceptualization, construction, and evaluation with women diagnosed with breast or gynecologic cancer. This resource, which has evolved from patient-focused research and has been tested in the clinical setting, can be used in patient education and support. Oncology professionals are committed to addressing quality-of-life concerns for patients across the trajectory of illness. Sexuality is a key concern for patients and impacts relationships and overall quality of life. Through careful assessment, patient education, and support, clinicians can ensure that sexuality is respected as an essential part of patient-centered care.

… The women who responded to the survey were predominantly Caucasian, educated, and middle class. Thus, their view may not be representative of minority women living with cancer. Therefore, we cannot generalize our findings to a larger general population. The A to Z Guide was written as a resource for women to help them anticipate the sexual health changes their bodies would experience throughout cancer treatment and to validate their experiences throughout survivorship.

Our team has continued to refine The A to Z Guide as we receive input from readers. Since the guide was released and made available for download on partner websites, we have received overwhelmingly positive response from users both nationally and internationally. The guide is being used by cancer centers; survivorship clinics; breast, gynecologic, lymphedema, and pelvic radiation support groups; nursing and medical schools; and family medicine clinics. It is our hope that more clinicians will make use of this resource, as it is free and can be downloaded in two formats: one designed for on-screen reading and one collated to print as a booklet.

Oncology professionals are committed to addressing QOL concerns for patients across the trajectory of illness. Sexuality is a key concern for patients, as it impacts relationships and overall QOL (Matzo, 2015). Through careful assessment, patient education, and support, oncology advanced practitioners can ensure that sexuality is respected as an essential part of patient-centered care (Matzo, 2010).

Below:  Respondents’ Scoring of The A to Z Guide

Full article at:  http://goo.gl/fSoo0d

By:  Marianne Matzo, PhD, APRN-CNP, FPCN, FAAN ,1 Sandi Troup, BSN, RN,2 Kamal Hijjazi, PhD, RN,3 and Betty Ferrell, PhD, FAAN4

¹ College of Nursing and Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;

² Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;

³ College of Nursing, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;

⁴City of Hope, Los Angeles, California

Correspondence to: Marianne Matzo, PhD, APRN-CNP, FPCN, FAAN, Stephenson Cancer Center, Department of Geriatric Medicine, 1100 N. Stonewall Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK 73117. E-mail: mmatzo@ouhsc.edu

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