Researching sexual health in Indigenous Australian men

Andrology Australia has created a scholarship for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to undertake full-time research towards a PhD degree.

The aim of the project will be to focus on health service access and primary health care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men, including reproductive and sexual health.

Raising awareness of reproductive health disorders in men and associated conditions in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community is one of the priority areas for Andrology Australia, the peak Australian body for male sexual health research.

As a group, Indigenous Australians experience poorer health outcomes than other Australians, including in the area of sexual health.

A recent study led by Adjunct Professor Mick Adams at the Queensland University of Technology reported low levels of help-seeking behaviours for reproductive health disorders among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men, with implications for missing or late diagnosis of erectile dysfunction.

Erectile disease is a hidden problem and most Australian men are largely unaware of the link between chronic disease, such as heart disease and diabetes, and erectile dysfunction.

Adam’s study found that the prevalence of moderate-to-severe erectile dysfunction increased from about 10% in younger Indigenous men (under 35 years) to 28% in Indigenous men aged 55-74 years.

This compares to a 2010 study of non-Indigenous men which found that 16% of men over 50 experienced erectile dysfunction.

According to Adams, cultural and geographical barriers exist in Indigenous men’s help-seeking behaviours for reproductive health problems. “Similarly, health professionals may feel inappropriately equipped to talk about erectile dysfunction, particularly when gender, generational and/or cultural differences exist within the patient-doctor relationship,” he said.

The appointed PhD student will be involved in working on how the management of chronic disease may be improved with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men.

The scholarship will be equivalent to the NHMRC Postgraduate Scholarship Stipend (about $30,500-$35,500 p.a) for three years full-time.

Adam’s study was published in the Medical Journal of Australia.