Local advocate calls for continued support of sexual health clinic
Isham said having clinics such as Options for Sexual Health that offer sexual and reproductive healthcare is just as important as having a health clinic that offers all forms of healthcare.Photo: Lauryn Mackenzie / CHLY 101.7fm
After Options for Sexual Health announced at the end of 2024 that 85 per cent of its clinics are at risk of closing, a local sexual health educator is calling on continuing support for the clinics.
With more than 50 clinics across the province, including in Nanaimo, Options for Sexual Health offers free birth control, sexually transmitted infections (STI) testing and care, Pap screenings, pregnancy testing, and pregnancy options counselling.
But now, with a lack of necessary funding from the Provincial Health Services Authority, Options may have to make the tough decision of closing 85 per cent of its clinics.
Sexual health educator Kerri Isham said she was horrified to learn about the possible loss of a vital part of the community.
Isham who has been a sexual health educator for almost 30 years and runs Power Up Sexual Health Education spoke to CHLY about the important resources Options offers for Nanaimo.
“Options for Sexual Health clinics are a vital part of the community because they specialize in reproductive health,” Isham said.
Isham got her certification as a sexual health educator through Options’ sexual health educator certification program. Options for Sexual Health is the only organization in Canada that offers a sexual health educator certification program.
“That's a vital part of Options for Sexual Health as well because they're creating people that are able to go out into the community and deliver sexual health education in a wide variety of capacities,” she said. “When I went through [the program] there were some educators, there were some hypnotherapists, sometimes counsellors take it, sometimes public health nurses take it.”
She said having clinics such as Options for Sexual Health that offer sexual and reproductive healthcare is just as important as having a health clinic that offers all forms of healthcare.
“The only thing that [Options] deals with is reproductive health. So it's different than going to a regular clinic if you have an ear infection or ingrown toenail or whatever,” she said. “These people want to be there, they specialize in this. So basically, you're getting the most up-to-date and accurate care that you could possibly get.”
Having worked with youth and young adults around sexual health, Isham said even though some high schools have school nurses, some students and young adults in Nanaimo are still without school nurses and family doctors. She said this means many people turn to clinics like Options for Sexual Health for reproductive and sexual healthcare.
“These clinics are vitally important for people who want to prevent STIs from spreading to other partners or to make sure you know that if they're pregnant they're getting the best care possible,” Isham said.
She said she has also seen youth who have family doctors but prefer to go to sexual health clinics for sexual or reproductive healthcare services.
If the Options clinic were to close in Nanaimo, Isham said there would be several options for people to get reproductive and sexual health support or services that dosen’t mean having to go to a walk-in clinic.
For STI testing, people can go to the Nanaimo Public Health Unit to pick up a pre-filled-out requisition from the front desk and then take it to Life Labs. NARFS Health Matters Clinic and AVI Health and Community Services also offer STI and HIV testing and care.
A list of clinics offering reproductive healthcare such as Pap testing in Nanaimo can be found on the BC Cancer website.
Isham said while there are other options for sexual and reproductive healthcare in Nanaimo, the closing of the Options for Sexual Health clinic would add more barriers for people to access the care they need.
She said she thinks people don’t always know where to go for sexual and reproductive healthcare which could lead people to go without the needed healthcare.
“I think all of our medical system is so stretched, so thin,” she said. “I think again, if people have to wait so long to get an appointment they may be participating in sexual activities that could put them at higher risk for STIs.”
With the possible closure of the clinic, Isham said now is also the time for parents of youth to start having conversations with their youth about sexual health and to advocate for sexual health education in the school curriculums.
“I always say to the parents that come to my workshops, you are your child's sexual health educator, even if you didn't want that role, sorry, but that is your role,” she said. “I think people don't understand that if you have an STI and it goes untreated, it can damage your reproductive organs and cause infertility when you're older. That's one of the things that I tell my students starting in grade seven because we want them to look after their bodies.”
Options for Sexual Health gave the B.C. government the deadline of January 31 to respond to its request for more bridge funding before they announce the official closures of its clinics.
Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.