A nurse is anxious about assessing the sexual history of a patient who is considerably older than the nurse is. Which statement would be most appropriate for obtaining information about the patient's sexual practices?

Question

a. "Some people are not sexually active, others have a partner, and some have several partners. What has been your pattern?"
b. "Sexual health can reflect a number of medical problems, so I'd like to ask if you have any sexual problems you think we should know about."
c. "It's your own business, of course, but it might be helpful for us to have some information about your sexual history. Could you tell me about that, please?"
d. "I would appreciate it if you could share your sexual history with me so I can share it with your health care provider. It might be helpful in planning your treatment."

Answer 1

ANS: A
Explaining that sexual practices vary helps reduce patient anxiety about the topic by normalizing the full range of sexual practices so that whatever his situation, the patient can feel comfortable sharing it. "It's your business of course…" implies the nurse does not have a valid reason to seek the information and in effect suggests that the patient perhaps should not answer the question. "It might be helpful…" makes the information seem less valid or important for the nurse to pursue and, again, could discourage the patient from responding fully. Asking if the patient has any sexual problems that staff should know about is not unprofessional, but it is a very broad question that may increase a patient's uncertainty about what the nurse wants to hear, thus increasing his anxiety. Defining or giving an example of "sexual problem" would make this inquiry more effective.