Older Adult Sexuality and Educational Needs of Nursing Staff in Nursing Facilities

Objective: Sexuality and sexual expression are basic needs throughout the lifespan. For older adults living in nursing homes, sexual expression is often challenging. A limited body of research exists to understand nursing staff knowledge and perceptions of resident sexuality in long-term care settings. The aims of this study were to ascertain resident sexual expressions encountered by nursing staff, nursing knowledge and attitudes related to resident sexuality, and their perceived learning needs. Methods: A cross-sectional study of nurses working in nursing homes was performed. A survey was developed that included both closed-ended and open-ended questions. Knowledge and attitude questions were drawn from an existing instrument (ASKAS). A web-based system was used to distribute the survey. Participants were recruited from facilities of various sizes, both for-profit and non-profit, and in urban, rural, and suburban areas. Emails were sent to administrators to distribute the survey to nursing staff. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used to analyze survey results. Results: There were 92 completed surveys, including 34 nurses (37%) and 32 nursing assistants (35%). Overall, 20 respondents (25%) had never received any training on older adult sexuality. Significant knowledge gaps were identified. Though many reported an awareness of sexual expressions by residents occurring, the majority had not personally witnessed any. Conclusions: The results of this survey reaffirm findings in the literature that nursing staff are not receiving training about older adult sexuality in nursing homes. The study also identified knowledge deficits about specific aspects of older adult sexuality. This study, primarily with frontline nursing staff, found limited experience with older adult sexual expression in comparison to prior studies of nursing home leaders and administrators. This may reflect different workplace responsibilities and unique educational needs. Continuing education initiatives may be necessary to equip nursing staff with the skills needed to deliver individualized sexual health care to older adults in long-term care facilities.

Author dc:creator

• Laura Morton (23292097)

• older adult
• sexuality
• long-term care
• nursing home
• education
• training
• conceptual framework

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright
• Open Access after 2028-01-01

DOI dc:identifier

https://doi.org/10.25417/uic.31451788.v1

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:figshare.com:article/31451788