Nurses critical in assuring health needs of LGBTIQ youth
Nurses must leverage their positions in society and clinical milieus to advocate for better healthcare for teenagers who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, intersexed and queer (LGBTIQ), according to a study published in the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing.
Despite progress in social acceptance and civil rights, LGBTIQ adolescents can be reluctant to consult a physician because they may experience misunderstanding, bias or homophobia. “Nurses’ attitudes may be critical in determining LGBTIQ adolescents’ satisfaction with their healthcare,” says study author Deborah Dysart-Gale, chair of the General Studies Unit at the Concordia University Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science.
“Nurses are frequently gatekeepers of the clinical encounter, administering the typically heteronormative nursing assessment,” she says, adding that gains in LGBTIQ trust could be as simple as asking patients if they are “partnered” rather than “married.”
In the United States, Dysart-Gale stresses, many government-funded sex education programs teach abstinence until marriage rather than safer and alternative sex practices. “Such curricula pose particular dangers for LGBTIQ youth, who are implicitly taught that heterosexuality is the only sanctioned sexual behavior and attraction to same-sex peers is illegitimate,” she says, stressing nurses can help reduce transmission of sexually transmitted infections by discussing safe LGBTIQ sex practices.
Nurses should be nonjudgmental, tolerant and supportive of LGBTIQ in both the clinic and the community, adds Dysart-Gale. “Nurses can build bridges of trust to patients. In the clinic, nurses can combat homophobia by informing themselves about the needs of LGBTIQ clients, and maintaining open and positive communication. They can advocate for institutional policies that are fair and inclusive.”
Additional information:
- Cited Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing study
- Concordia's General Studies Unit
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