Study of nursing student's knowledge about sexuality and sexual health

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to assess the impact of a teaching unit about sexuality and sexual health on university nursing students. All students enrolled in Maternity and Gynecological Nursing Course were included in this study [n=150]. Two tools were used for data collection The 1st was a questionnaire to assess student's knowledge about certain areas in sexuality and sexual health e.g. female and male reproductive anatomy and physiology, sexual response cycle, female sexual response and circumcision, male and female sex problems, sex education and menopause. This tool was administered twice, once before the conduction of the teaching unit and the other at its end. The 2nd tool was the teaching unit which stressed the gaps in the student's knowledge as identified by their response in tool 1. The results revealed a general lack of knowledge in almost all the investigated parameters before the teaching unit. However, a significant improvement in student's knowledge' was observed after the teaching unit. This indicated that sex education as well as sexual health should be effectively integrated in the university nursing curriculum