By Deborah Arrindell
“A woman’s health is her capital.”—Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe lived to be 85, an unusual feat for a woman born in 1811, when life expectancy was about 40. It is fair to assume she wasn’t talking specifically about women’s sexual health or reproductive health, but her words still ring true. Health is
everything.
Yes, men and women experience similar health issues—heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, for example. But there are health challenges that negatively impact only, or predominately, women. Certainly, in reproductive and sexual health, women have unique risks. In addition to obvious areas, such as those inherent in pregnancy and childbirth, women are more likely to suffer long-term complications from untreated sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Understanding women’s distinct health needs is essential to providing care.
Pharmacists are well-positioned to help women understand and protect their sexual health. Through consultations, vaccinations, and community education, they are making it easier and more convenient for women to protect their sexual health and their children.
The American Sexual Health Association (ASHA) has a wide range of resources available for patients and providers on sexual health topics of Importance to women.
No, chlamydia is not a flower
Chlamydia is an example of disparate impact. With 1.7 million cases reported to CDC in 2017, chlamydia is the country’s most common notifiable condition. Women between 15 and 24 comprise nearly one-half of these cases and face the most severe consequences of undiagnosed infection. According to CDC, between 10% and 20% of women with untreated chlamydia and gonorrhea infections may develop pelvic inflammatory disease that can lead to infertility, cause ectopic pregnancy, and chronic pelvic pain.
Or, chlamydia can be no big deal. It is easily treated. Professional societies and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommend annual chlamydia screening for sexually active women 25 years and under. Given that chlamydia is typically asymptomatic, screening is especially important to identify a “silent” infection before complications develop. Regular screening is an essential part of prevention.
ASHA’s Yes Means Test campaign is designed to educate young women about recommended screening. The campaign features a video with comedian Whitney Cummings talking to young people about sexual health and sexually trasnmitted disease testing. A number of materials, including a poster, postcard, flyers, and a digital display, are available on the National Chlamydia Coalition’s website (www.chlamydiacoalition.org/yes-meanstest), an ASHA site.
Yes, a vaccine can help prevent cervical cancer
It is estimated that at least 80% of sexually active people will have Human Papillomavirus (HPV) at some point in their lifetime. HPV is responsible for about 33,700 cases of cancer each year, and is the cause of nearly all cases of cervical and anal cancer, and most cases of vaginal, oropharyngeal, and vulvar cancer. Within 6 years of the introduction of the first HPV vaccine, there was a 64% decrease in HPV prevalence among females aged from 14 to 19 years and a 34% decrease among those aged from 20 to 24 years.
ASHA’s website at www.ashasexualhealth.org offers comprehensive information about HPV-related disease, including genital warts, cervical cancer, and other HPV-related cancer. The free printable “10 Things to Know about HPV” covers many of these topics, as does a new series done in partnership with WebMD, ”HPV—What’s the Real Story?” This module includes important info on HPV vaccination and focuses on its role in cancer prevention. The same message is delivered in two videos available from ASHA featuring pediatrician Maria Trent, faculty member at Johns Hopkins University Schools of Medicine, offering her perspective as both a parent and a provider on why she vaccinates.
Get informed
Activist Margaret Sanger, the woman who coined the term “birth control,” said: “Woman must have her freedom, the fundamental freedom of choosing whether or not she will be a mother and how many children she will have.” It can be challenging for women to understand the wide range of contraceptive options available and make a fully informed choice.
ASHA offers comprehensive information on contraception on our website, including benefits and challenges of each. In a pair of educational videos on contraceptive choices, we feature a group of women talking about the type of contraceptive method they chose and why it makes sense for them, their lifestyle, and relationship, with an OB/GYN on hand to offer more information on options like long-acting reversible contraception (LARC). An infographic on LARC methods—the IUD and implant—also offers an overview of these highly effective birth control options.
Rather listen or watch? Start with ASHA’s Sex+Health podcast (available on ASHA’s website, iTunes, and Google Play), where you will find episodes on a variety of sexual health topics featuring interviews with medical professionals and experts in the field of sexuality. Recent episodes include a two-part conversation on genital herpes, chronic pelvic pain in women, and sexual pleasure. Then tune in to ASHA’s Sexual Health TV at www.sexualhealthtv.org, ASHA’s dedicated video website. You will find a wide range of sexual health programming, including personal stories from cervical cancer survivors, shorts on chlamydia and other STI’s infections, managing sexual difficulties, and more.
About ASHA
We share your goal of addressing women’s health needs and promoting the pharmacists’ role as a women’s health resource. ASHA can be a resource for patients and pharmacists alike.
Prevention is key to the work of our organization. ASHA has educated the public and health providers on sexual health and STI prevention for more than 100 years, focused on promoting healthy sexuality and sexual behaviors and reducing the burden of STIs. ASHA believes that all people have the right to the information and services that will help them to have optimum sexual health. We also believe that good sexual health contributes to overall health and quality of life. By educating women—and their health providers—about basic steps, they can protect their sexual health and well-being.
APhA–ASP Women’s Health Campaign
Three APhA–ASP Chapters will be selected to conduct a Women’s Health Campaign poster presentation during the APhA2019 Annual Meeting & Exposition in Seattle, WA. Selected chapters will also have an article on their projects featured in Student Pharmacist. The selected chapters will receive a complimentary registration for one student and faculty advisor. The APhA–ASP National Executive Committee will review the report submissions and select the top three chapters during their 2019 January Business Meeting. The selected chapters will be notified and announced by mid-January.
To qualify for the poster presentation and complimentary registrations, APhA–ASP Chapters must complete at least one activity in each of three required areas:
- Promoting the importance of the HPV vaccine in
- preventing cancer.
- Promoting the pharmacist’s role in reproductive health.
- An event focused on women’s health topic of the chapter’s choice.
Participating chapters should complete the online, executive summary of their activities at https://fs8.formsite.com/APhA-ASP/WomensHealthCampaign/index.html. The deadline to submit information on activities and be eligible for recognition is 11:59 pm PST on December 15, 2018. APhA–ASP is proud to offer the Women’s Health Campaign with the support of Merck.