General News
10 May, 2026
Call the Doctor: Why sexual health matters
This week, for my part time job with the medical school, I was teaching medical students on how to talk to patients about sexual health. Despite being important, sexual health is often not spoken about for various reasons.
I thought it would be a good idea to write a column about some of the important reasons to talk about sexual health, and by doing so hopefully encourage people to bring it up with their GP.
Perhaps an obvious place to start is by talking about Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI).
These are sadly quite common, partly because people may not have any symptoms and hence not be aware that they are infected and are spreading the disease.
Being tested for STI’s is simple and easy, and there are effective treatments.
Current GP guidelines suggest that anyone who has a new sexual partner and all sexually active women under the age of 25 be tested for an infection, even if they don’t have any symptoms.
It is also recommended that anyone who asks for a test be provided with one.
Sadly some STIs are becoming more common in Australia, and they can have serious long term consequences.
People may have sex related problems for a whole range of reasons, many of which can be relatively easily addressed.
Men may experience difficulty obtaining or maintaining an erection, or ejaculating prematurely.
Careful review by a GP can identify and then fix the cause of this, and if not there is usually effective medication that can resolve the issue.
Likewise in those with low libido, underlying reasons can be addressed or medication can be used.
Women can experience pain during intercourse; something that can often be treated by health care professionals and/or medication.
Difficulties having sex can cause significant distress to people, and sometimes people may not feel comfortable asking for help. GPs are trained on how to provide the relevant healthcare and are comfortable doing so.
Lastly it is worth mentioning the importance of talking to your GP about any lumps, bumps or rashes around one's private parts.
Whilst I won’t go into any detail, given this isn’t the forum to have such a conversation, I will mention why this is important.
People can develop skin cancers around the genitals, and if they don’t feel comfortable telling their GP about it, these can go untreated for years until they become too advanced to treat.
There are many other common and important sexual health issues.
If you have any questions or concerns, book an appointment with your GP to discuss them.