Sex and Gender Health Education Summit: Advancing Curricula Through a Multidisciplinary Lens

Abstract

Introduction:The Sex and Gender Health Education (SGHE) Summit was a national collaboration that engaged educational thought leaders from various health professions to advance curricula by integrating sex-and gender-based evidence into health education. Materials and Methods: The SGHE Summit was held over a 2.5-day period April 2018 at the University of Utah. Pre-and postsummit surveys assessed attitudinal and knowledge changes. Results: A total of 246 health care professionals and trainees from U.S. and International Institutions attended. One hundred fifty-seven presummit surveys and 115 postsummit surveys were completed. Postsummit beliefs: SGHE is critical to precision medicine (100%); it is essential to include female animals in preclinical research studies (96%); sex and gender concepts could be used to improve men's health (99%). A teaching tool summarizes the initial questions to consider in SGHE. Conclusion: The SGHE Summit was the first multiprofessional large-scale national effort focused on the integration of sex and gender knowledge into the education of all health professionals. Summit participants now represent a national network of educators and clinicians who recognize the centrality of sex and gender to health professionals' knowledge and practice. These educational efforts will ultimately ensure a more personalized health care delivery.

Sex and Gender Health Educational Tenets: A Report from the 2020 Sex and Gender Health Education Summit

“…While most of the available resources come from medicine, they can be adapted and used interprofessionally. 26 Importantly, current educational materials must be updated as new evidence of sex and gender differences emerges from research studies. A timely example comes from the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, with data showing lower mortality among women, possibly related to sex-based hormonal and/or immune-mediated advantages in women with regard to protection from the SARS-CoV-2 virus, as well as sociocultural differences in risk preferences, gendered roles, and behaviors.…”

Men's health disparities: Causes and interventions

“…Men are four times more likely than women to commit suicide 19 . Additional causes are the negative play of the social determinants of men's health (which affect their access to healthcare), and not addressing men's health by incorporating sex and gender‐based education in academia and research causing ineptitude in providing culturally congruent holistic care 2,16,20 …”

“…Despite the fact that sex and gender differences are progressively acknowledged as contributing causes to health disparities; yet, they are not properly integrated into interdisciplinary health professions curricula. Indeed, sex and gender have a direct impact on the etiology, risk factors, clinical manifestations, prevention, and responses to treatment 16 . Hence, the Sex and Gender Health Education (SGHE) Summit, which took place in April 2018 at the University of Utah, focused on sex and gender health education across various health disciplines 16 .…”

“…The gender gap in men's longevity is attributed to many causes. For example, risky lifestyle, higher rates of depression and suicide, higher susceptibility to diseases due to genetics and biological vulnerabilities, the negative effects of the masculinity paradigm, men's social determinants of health, underutilization of primary care and preventive health resources, and lack of interdisciplinary sex and gender‐based health curricula in health education 1,2,4,15,16 …”

Sex and gender specific health topics in medical student learners: pulse check eight years later

“…Efforts are ongoing to examine gaps in medical school curricula for sex and gender competencies and to identify strategies to embed these concepts into both curricula and clinical practice [ 14 , 15 ]. Focused SGSH workshops have successfully targeted healthcare professionals of diverse disciplines and specialties; a similar approach could be used to begin integration of sex and gender-based concepts into medical professional education until more permanent integration of SGSH into curriculum is made [ 13 , 16 , 17 ]. Attendance at Gender Based Medicine lectures has increased awareness of and sensitivity to gender differences in medicine [ 18 ].…”