Experts have praised the decision to open a new GU clinic on the University campus as part of an outreach programme on sexual health, but questions have arisen over whether the proposed plan goes far enough.
“The University is a captive audience bubbling with hormones, so a new clinic is certainly a good idea,” said Dr Philip Carabot, the former head of the GU Clinic.
Dr Carabot was reacting to the announcement of the campus clinic by Dr Charmaine Gauci, Director of Health Promotion, during a briefing to the Parliamentary Social Affairs Committee on the work being carried out on sexual health.
Dr Carabot, however, expressed concerns over the specifics of how the clinic will be run.
According to sources, the clinic is expected to start operating next Wednesday and will be staffed by a single nurse, whose main responsibility will be to give advice on sexual health. Those with sexual health problems will still be directed to the central GU Clinic at Mater Dei.
It is very important to know what training the nurse has had, and what facilities will be available to them, said Dr Carabot.
“If it were me, I would want it to be run by a trained physician, with facilities that mirror what is available at Mater Dei,” he said.
He added that in future, he would like to see a system of localised GU clinics supporting the central clinic at Mater Dei, and suggested that the next step might be to open a clinic in one of the larger health centres.
Sex therapist Matthew Bartolo said the opening of a new clinic specialised to the needs of young people showed the importance of outreach in sexual health education, and called for similar initiatives in other educational institutions, including MCAST and Junior College.
Technology, for example, is changing how young people learn about and experience sex
“The idea that if we talk about sex, young people will have more sex is wrong. Research shows that in countries with a high level of openness about sex, young people actually start having sex later, and suffer from fewer STDs,” he said. Mr Bartolo added that the plan shows a positive direction in the development of sexual health education.
The new proposal in fact represents something of a turnaround in approach at the University, which in 2009 was drawn into a protracted debate over the installation of a condom machine on campus. The plan for the condom machine was ultimately shot down by the University Students’ Council.
“We’re acknowledging the situation and we’re focusing on more holistic sexual education,” Mr Bartolo said.
“But there’s always room to improve. Technology, for example, is changing how young people learn about and experience sex, and we need to be able to adapt to new developments quickly.”