WashBlade
Mar 16, 2007, 3:51 PM
Joshua Lynsen, a reporter for the Washington Blade newspaper in Washington, D.C., is seeking comments from men and women who are bisexual for an upcoming article. Your participation would be appreciated.
The article is being done in conjunction with the NGLTF's release of a new report, "Bisexual Health: An Introduction and Model Practices for HIV/STI Prevention Programming." The article looks at how sexual health issues affecting bisexuals have been largely ignored in discussions of straight, gay or lesbian health.
If you would like to comment for this article, please take a few moments to e-mail your responses to the questions below by Sunday, March 18, to jlynsen@washblade.com. PLEASE NOTE: To protect the exclusivity of this information for publication purposes, do not post your responses on this forum.
Also, be aware that it's important you are comfortable having your full name, age, place of residence, and sexual orientation printed in the paper. Responses that do not include this information cannot be used.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Joshua via e-mail. Thanks!
== QUESTIONS ==
1. Does your current primary care physician know that you are bisexual? Why have you revealed or concealed your sexual orientation in this area?
2. If applicable, how did your current physician react upon learning that you are bisexual? In your estimation, did he or she react properly or improperly?
3. Have you ever sought a physician who is particularly sensitive to and knowledgeable about bisexual health issues? If yes, how did you conduct your search and what did you find? If no, why not?
4. The report references two phenomena: bi-phobia (the fear or hatred of bisexual people) and bi-invisibility (a lack of acknowledgment that bisexuals exist). Have you ever experienced either phenomena in a medical setting? Explain your experience. This could be as benign as a form having only "heterosexual" and "homosexual" as options, or as overt as a doctor being ill-informed on bisexual health issues.
5. Have you ever felt that as a bisexual, you were given improper or incomplete information about your risk of sexually transmitted infections? Describe what happened, your reaction and, if applicable, how the situation was resolved or you obtained the information you needed.
6. By comparison to private medical practitioners, how do you feel public health departments handle bisexual sexual health issues? Explain your answer.
7. The report includes a list of the top 10 bisexual health issues: Drug use, alcohol use, sexual health, tobacco use, cancer, nutrition and fitness, heart health, depression and anxiety, social support, and self harm and suicide attempts. (More information about why these issues were identified can be found in Appendix A of the report.) Do you feel these 10 items fairly represent the top bisexual health issues? Why?
8. The report asks medical providers to "ensure safe and accessible services for bisexual individuals," and "add new services or expand existing services to cater to bisexual people." Among the suggestions were brochures and support groups targeted to bisexuals. What other offerings might you like to see from your local medical providers?
9. In your estimation, and based on your experience, is more education about bisexuality and bisexual health issues needed for health care providers? What makes you say this?
10. Is there anything I did not ask you about this topic or your own experiences that you would like to mention?
YOUR NAME (first and last):
YOUR AGE (include date of birth):
YOUR PLACE OF RESIDENCE (city and state, plus country if not U.S.):
YOUR SEXUAL ORIENTATION:
Thank you for your time and attention. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Joshua at jlynsen@washblade.com.
The article is being done in conjunction with the NGLTF's release of a new report, "Bisexual Health: An Introduction and Model Practices for HIV/STI Prevention Programming." The article looks at how sexual health issues affecting bisexuals have been largely ignored in discussions of straight, gay or lesbian health.
If you would like to comment for this article, please take a few moments to e-mail your responses to the questions below by Sunday, March 18, to jlynsen@washblade.com. PLEASE NOTE: To protect the exclusivity of this information for publication purposes, do not post your responses on this forum.
Also, be aware that it's important you are comfortable having your full name, age, place of residence, and sexual orientation printed in the paper. Responses that do not include this information cannot be used.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Joshua via e-mail. Thanks!
== QUESTIONS ==
1. Does your current primary care physician know that you are bisexual? Why have you revealed or concealed your sexual orientation in this area?
2. If applicable, how did your current physician react upon learning that you are bisexual? In your estimation, did he or she react properly or improperly?
3. Have you ever sought a physician who is particularly sensitive to and knowledgeable about bisexual health issues? If yes, how did you conduct your search and what did you find? If no, why not?
4. The report references two phenomena: bi-phobia (the fear or hatred of bisexual people) and bi-invisibility (a lack of acknowledgment that bisexuals exist). Have you ever experienced either phenomena in a medical setting? Explain your experience. This could be as benign as a form having only "heterosexual" and "homosexual" as options, or as overt as a doctor being ill-informed on bisexual health issues.
5. Have you ever felt that as a bisexual, you were given improper or incomplete information about your risk of sexually transmitted infections? Describe what happened, your reaction and, if applicable, how the situation was resolved or you obtained the information you needed.
6. By comparison to private medical practitioners, how do you feel public health departments handle bisexual sexual health issues? Explain your answer.
7. The report includes a list of the top 10 bisexual health issues: Drug use, alcohol use, sexual health, tobacco use, cancer, nutrition and fitness, heart health, depression and anxiety, social support, and self harm and suicide attempts. (More information about why these issues were identified can be found in Appendix A of the report.) Do you feel these 10 items fairly represent the top bisexual health issues? Why?
8. The report asks medical providers to "ensure safe and accessible services for bisexual individuals," and "add new services or expand existing services to cater to bisexual people." Among the suggestions were brochures and support groups targeted to bisexuals. What other offerings might you like to see from your local medical providers?
9. In your estimation, and based on your experience, is more education about bisexuality and bisexual health issues needed for health care providers? What makes you say this?
10. Is there anything I did not ask you about this topic or your own experiences that you would like to mention?
YOUR NAME (first and last):
YOUR AGE (include date of birth):
YOUR PLACE OF RESIDENCE (city and state, plus country if not U.S.):
YOUR SEXUAL ORIENTATION:
Thank you for your time and attention. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Joshua at jlynsen@washblade.com.