ABSTRACT
Introduction In a self-report study of women presenting to a gynecological clinic, 9 out of 10 women reported a sexual health concern (Nusbaum 2003). These concerns are best addressed using a biopsychosocial approach to assessment, treatment and prevention drawing on medical, behavioral and psychological science. At an academic health center in the United States, The Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service was launched in 2019 to provide evaluation, education, treatment and prevention interventions using an integrated practice model. The interdepartmental program currently includes an Advanced Practice Nurse from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology as well as two clinical health psychologists from the Department of Psychiatry all with expertise in women's health and women's sexual medicine. Our interprofessional team collaborates closely with providers in women's primary care, medical, gynecologic and radiation oncology, urogynecology, colorectal surgery, among others. Objective Review lessons learned from interdepartmental program design, funding, implementation, and evaluation of the Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service in an academic health center, summarize the types of sexual health concerns among women who presented to the integrated service, and highlight recommendations to generalize and/or adjust the program model to other types of health settings. Methods Review the program implementation and evaluation process for the Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service, summarize the data on the women seen for care from April 23 2019 through June, 2021 (e.g., the number of unduplicated patients evaluated, their age, sexual health concerns, and treatment offered, etc), and outline program challenges and strategies to sustain and expand the initiative during and following the COVID-19 pandemic through virtual and in-person care. Results The Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service saw 198 women from April 23 2019 through June, 2021. Patients ranged in age from 21 to 72 (mean: 45 years). While most patients (33%) referred themselves to this program, other women were referred by obgyns, medical oncologists, women's primary care providers and gynecologic oncologists. Primary sexual health concerns included one or more of the following issues: pain (100), low desire (76), difficulty with orgasm (19), difficulty with arousal (12) and other (55). Additional findings will be presented on the types of treatment offered as well as patient and referring provider satisfaction with the new integrated sexual health consult service. Conclusions Our interdepartmental Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service implemented a highly successful program that integrates sexual medicine, behavioral health, health psychology and sexual therapy to ensure access to state-of-the-art interprofessional education and care for women across the life span in all their diversities. We were able to sustain and expand this program through telehealth and in-person visits during the COVID-19 pandemic, and anticipate further growth in patient referrals and treatment modalities moving forward. Providers across disciplines also routinely refer to and collaborate with the program. Several components of the model are generalizable or adjustable to other women's health settings. Disclosure No
ABSTRACT
In a self-report study of women presenting to a gynecological clinic, 9 out of 10 women reported a sexual health concern (Nusbaum 2003). These concerns are best addressed using a biopsychosocial approach to assessment, treatment and prevention drawing on medical, behavioral and psychological science. At an academic health center in the United States, The Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service was launched in 2019 to provide evaluation, education, treatment and prevention interventions using an integrated practice model. The interdepartmental program currently includes an Advanced Practice Nurse from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology as well as two clinical health psychologists from the Department of Psychiatry all with expertise in women's health and women's sexual medicine. Our interprofessional team collaborates closely with providers in women's primary care, medical, gynecologic and radiation oncology, urogynecology, colorectal surgery, among others. Review lessons learned from interdepartmental program design, funding, implementation, and evaluation of the Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service in an academic health center, summarize the types of sexual health concerns among women who presented to the integrated service, and highlight recommendations to generalize and/or adjust the program model to other types of health settings. Review the program implementation and evaluation process for the Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service, summarize the data on the women seen for care from April 23 2019 through June, 2021 (e.g., the number of unduplicated patients evaluated, their age, sexual health concerns, and treatment offered, etc), and outline program challenges and strategies to sustain and expand the initiative during and following the COVID-19 pandemic through virtual and in-person care. The Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service saw 198 women from April 23 2019 through June, 2021. Patients ranged in age from 21 to 72 (mean: 45 years). While most patients (33%) referred themselves to this program, other women were referred by obgyns, medical oncologists, women's primary care providers and gynecologic oncologists. Primary sexual health concerns included one or more of the following issues: pain (100), low desire (76), difficulty with orgasm (19), difficulty with arousal (12) and other (55). Additional findings will be presented on the types of treatment offered as well as patient and referring provider satisfaction with the new integrated sexual health consult service. Our interdepartmental Women's Sexual Health Consultation Service implemented a highly successful program that integrates sexual medicine, behavioral health, health psychology and sexual therapy to ensure access to state-of-the-art interprofessional education and care for women across the life span in all their diversities. We were able to sustain and expand this program through telehealth and in-person visits during the COVID-19 pandemic, and anticipate further growth in patient referrals and treatment modalities moving forward. Providers across disciplines also routinely refer to and collaborate with the program. Several components of the model are generalizable or adjustable to other women's health settings. Work supported by industry: no. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Sexual Medicine is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)
ABSTRACT
From March 2020, the Mathematics Support Centre at University College Dublin, Ireland, and the Mathematics Education Support Hub at Western Sydney University, Australia, moved wholly online and have largely remained so to the point of writing (August 2021). The dramatic and swift changes brought on by COVID-19, in particular to fully online modes of teaching and learning including mathematics and statistics support (MSS), have presented students and tutors with a host of new opportunities for thinking and working. This study aims to gain insight both from students and tutors about their experience of wholly online learning and tutoring in the COVID-19 era. In this sense, it represents a 'perspectives' study, the idea being that before we examine specific aspects of this experience, it would be best to know what the issues are. Employing a qualitative analysis framework of 23 one-on-one interview transcripts with tutors and students from both institutions in Australia and Ireland, we identified five key themes as central to the shared experiences and perspectives of tutors and students. In this study, we discuss three of these themes in relation to the new normal with the intention of supporting MSS practitioners, researchers and students going forward. The themes describe the usage of online support, how mathematics is different and the future of online MSS. © 2021 The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications.
ABSTRACT
The dramatic changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have changed the way in which mathematics and statistics support is offered. Students and staff have been presented with new opportunities and challenges. One-on-one interviews were conducted late in 2020 with 23 students and staff who had experience with fully online mathematics and statistics support. The interviewees were from University College Dublin, Ireland, and Western Sydney University, Australia. Utilising thematic analysis, five themes around online mathematics and statistics support common to both universities were identified. In this paper the three themes related to connection are explored;they are pedagogical changes, social interaction, and appreciation of mathematics and statistics support. These themes highlight the need felt by both students and staff for mutual connection. The paper concludes with a discussion on the repercussions of this study for future considerations of effective online mathematics and statistics support. © 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.