Program/Event
Arts and Research Showcase 2025
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Previous research has identified some disparities between the care that masculine- and feminine-presenting patients experience with regards to sexual health. These disparities could cause feelings of unease and also difficulty with patient-physician communication. In medical education, standardized patients can help students identify and address implicit biases that could propagate as providers.
METHODS
The study population consisted of second year medical students (n=100) from the University of Louisville who completed sexual history-taking during a standardized patient encounter. Coders evaluated the phrases used, perceived comfort levels, and SP feedback among masculine- and feminine-presenting standardized patients.
RESULTS
While the patient presentation did not affect what questions students asked, students appeared to have a more informal approach when asking masculine-presenting patients about sexual history. Students reverted to formal terms like “sexual intercourse” and “sexual practices” when speaking with feminine-presenting patients, which affected their perceived comfort. Students overall appeared to be more comfortable addressing sexual health with masculine-presenting patients in comparison to feminine-presenting patients (80% compared to 64%). However, few SPs provided feedback to students regarding any negative aspects of their tone (8% of encounters).
DISCUSSION
Masculine- and feminine-presenting patients may experience differences in interactions with healthcare providers, and it is essential to address these concerns through medical education and training with standardized patients. These results could be generalized to sexual health education for medical students. Furthermore, these results could also be used to help standardized patients become aware of these trends and give feedback to students about their perceived discomfort.
REFERENCES:
Irina D. Burd, Nicole Nevadunsky, Gloria Bachmann, Impact of Physician Gender on Sexual History Taking in a Multispecialty Practice, The Journal of Sexual Medicine, Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2006, Pages 194–200, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1743-6109.2005.00168.x
Recommended Citation
Jella, Harshith; Noonan, Emily J.; and Weingartner, Laura
(2025)
"Patient presentation affects medical student comfort during sexual health encounters,"
The Cardinal Edge: Vol. 3:
Iss.
2, Article 22.
Available at:
https://ir.library.louisville.edu/tce/vol3/iss2/22