Modernising a New Workforce Fit for Purpose in Sexual Health

Abstract

This chapter continues the book’s theme concerning partnerships and integration, and focuses on the implications for the clinical workforce of service integration within sexual health. Written by three clinicians from a range of sexual health disciplines, based at the Sandyford Initiative - Lorraine Forster, Dr Urszula Bankowska, Martin Murchie – it reviews the clinical environment before integrations took place and the training needs of specialities and disciplines, and the role of recent government policy in influencing the shape of the sexual health workforce. The chapter describes the new skills and competencies required by medical and clinical disciplines to deliver integrated sexual health services. It suggests examples of good practice to effect that change from nursing, medical and health advising perspectives. The responsibility of national training agencies in supporting staff training, such as NHS Education Scotland (NES), Royal College of Nursing (RCN), the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health (FSRH) and the British Association of Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH) is described. The chapter concludes that there are a number of challenges ahead that will impact on sexual health care and maintaining a skilled workforce, including the availability of budgets to continue developing sexual health services, responding to changing population health needs and workforce issues. The authors argue that strong networks, professional identities and accredited clinical skills can only help to ensure that the sexual health workforce continues to make a valuable contribution to public health in Scotland.