Nursing students' perceptions of barriers to addressing patient sexuality concerns

Little is known about nursing students' perceptions of barriers to addressing patient sexuality concerns. The twofold purpose of this study was to identify and describe attitudes and beliefs that might act as barriers to addressing patient sexuality concerns and to determine the extent to which these attitudes and beliefs are influenced by personal factors such as age, gender, and education. The Sexuality Attitudes and Beliefs Survey was used to assess students (N = 341) enrolled in either a traditional or accelerated second-degree baccalaureate program. Important barriers to addressing patient sexuality concerns reported by the majority of the students included not making time to address the concerns (67.9%) and believing that patients do not expect nurses to address the concerns (66.4%). Findings also revealed that accelerated second-degree students were more restrictive in their attitudes toward addressing patient sexuality concerns, compared with traditional students. Results of this study have implications for BSN program development and evaluation.