Sexual Medicine Elective 2024:

This curriculum has been compiled to supplement your education and provide context for the subjects that will be discussed during the speaker series. The curriculum was developed by Dr. Matus and Lauren Tucker from the RHEcourse resources. We encourage you to engage with the material and consider the reflection questions.

Structures & Self: Advancing Equity and Justice

As we face these times of fear and uncertainty it is especially important that we combat misinformation and challenge racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, nationalistic rhetoric and narratives within our communities, our healthcare systems, and ourselves. Understanding our own implicit biases and having a clear understanding of how social, political, and economic structures impact health and identity are important in addressing inequity and ensuring that the healthcare setting is equipped to provide safe and compassionate care.

IERH acknowledges the importance of inclusive language as a component of patient-centered care and we are working to improve our content. Read more here.

Learning Objectives

Part 1. Sex and Gender 101

• Learners will be able to define and differentiate between gender, sex, gender expression, and gender identity.
• Learners will become familiar with the historical context and implications of colonization on the idea of a strict gender binary in the US, identify ways in which socially constructed binaries are damaging, and name other cultures that acknowledge more than 2 genders.
• Learners will be able to explain the purpose of pronouns and know how to ask people for their pronouns when it’s safe and appropriate to do so.
• Learners will understand that identity labels are personal and that almost all elements of identity, including gender, exist on a spectrum, and there’s no one right way to do it.
• Learners will understand how to apologize in a healthy way if they misgender or misidentify someone and understand that if they misgender someone and the person corrects them, that correction is an opportunity to change language and behavior to be more inclusive.

Part 2: Advancing Equity and Justice

• Learners will become familiar with historical context and implications for disparities in sexual and reproductive health. This video will review how the history of oppression, contributes to current health inequities.
• Learners will explore how the structures of power and oppression manifest within healthcare systems and impact sexual and reproductive health outcomes.
• Learners will identify implicit bias, privilege, and fragility regarding patient interactions, their relationship to structures of oppression, and practices for self-reflection and self-care.
• After learners have recognized their privilege, they will identify ways to center a justice framework and structural analysis as a tool to promote optimal health outcomes.