The emerging literature on the legal, ethical and policy challenges surrounding the expression of sexuality of older adults in nursing homes (including those with dementia) [6–9] supports the importance of expressing sexuality as an integral and legitimate need for people living in hospital care settings. Residents will be informed by the trained staff mentioned above. The authors state that they have no competing interests. Di Napoli EA, Breland GL, Allen RS: Staff knowledge and perception of sexuality and dementia of older people in nursing homes. J Aging health. 2013, 25: 1087-1105. Residents are interviewed and given the opportunity to discuss their personal presentation and style. Behaviours that interfere with the rights of others are documented and investigated. The results of the qualitative interviews confirmed the original pool of items from the literature and other documents and raised a number of additional issues, such as residents` access to paid services of sex workers; the need to support staff who were not comfortable with a resident`s expression of sexuality; and the lack of double beds in care facilities for the elderly. The original pool of articles was sent to two senior care facilities for critical review and comment. Institutional feedback identified a number of additional issues in the following areas: record retention and confidentiality of information; the effects of medications; the need for additional training and referrals of staff; the existence of environmental requirements that have affected privacy rules; and difficulties dealing with family members.
Guidelines on appropriate and inappropriate supports that staff can provide to residents. Although in Australia, the Residents` Bill of Rights and Responsibilities [36] sets out residents` right to privacy and control over their relationships, there are no definitive guidelines for older care facilities on how to make a facility more conducive to sexual expression. The use of the tool will allow institutions to identify and address issues in a structured and individual manner by establishing comprehensive “standards” that institutions can meet to better meet the needs of residents. Communication skills for staff to help them meet the needs of residents and families. Inclusion of sexuality in assessment and care planning. Roach SM: Sexual behaviour of nursing home residents: staff perceptions and reactions. J Adv nurses. 2004, 48: 371-379. It could be argued that treating sexuality as a separate subject maintains its taboo status and that a person-centred approach to care should include sexuality. However, we believe that the centrality of gender expression to health, well-being and quality of life, as well as its history of neglect in the health needs of older adults, justifies the use of a special tool such as this. As Wallace [37] noted, care plans rarely consider the sexual needs of residents, despite the potential benefits of person-centred care.
Availability of trained staff to talk about sexuality and provide support. Recognize a resident`s right to use aids, devices or images in their room. Residents may request that sexually explicit material be used in the privacy of their own room. Availability of double or connecting rooms for residents wishing to live as a couple. 11 Compare Local Law 38 (2018) (“`Gender` includes sex, gender identity and gender expression, real or perceived, including a person`s real or perceived self-image, appearance, behaviour, expression or other gender-related characteristics, regardless of the sex assigned to that person at birth”) with Local Law 3 (2002) (“`Sex` includes perceived gender and also includes gender identity, a person`s self-image, appearance, behaviour or expression, whether that gender identity, self-image, appearance, behaviour or expression is different from that traditionally associated with the legal sex assigned to that person at birth”). The SexAT is designed to be self-managed by a senior care facility manager or other senior staff member who is familiar with the facility and is familiar with current policies, procedures and strategies. For simplicity, a “yes”, “no” or “sometimes” format was used, with responses counted at the end of each section. Give the institution a score for each section, as well as a total score. In this way, institutions can assess their compliance in individual areas and as a whole.