Health Economics Unit, Institute of Applied Health Research, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
Department of Health Services Research, Care and Public Health Research Institute (CAPHRI), Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences (FHML), Maastricht Universit, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
BMJ Open. 2023 Jan 12;13(1):e066663. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-066663.
Sexual health is a complex public health challenge and can generate wide-ranging health, social and economic impacts both within and beyond the health sector (ie, intersectoral costs and benefits). Methods are needed to capture these intersectoral impacts in economic studies to optimally inform policy/decision-making. The objectives of this study were (1) to explore the different intersectoral costs and benefits associated with sexual health issues and interventions, (2) to categorise these into sectors and (3) to develop a preliminary framework to better understand these impacts and to guide future research and policy.
A qualitative study based on in-depth semi-structured online interviews.
OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) member countries.
Professionals with expertise in the field of sexual health including clinicians, medical practitioners, sexologists, researchers, professionals working for international governmental or non-governmental health (policy) organisations and professionals involved in implementation and/or evaluation of sexual health interventions/programmes.
Sampling of participants was undertaken purposively. We conducted in-depth semi-structured online interviews to allow for a systemic coverage of key topics and for new ideas to emerge. We applied a Framework approach for thematic data analysis.
28 experts were interviewed. Six themes emerged from the interviews: (1) Interconnections to other areas of health (ie, reproductive health, mental health), (2) Relationships and family, (3) Productivity and labour, (4) Education, (5) Criminal justice/sexual violence, (6) Housing, addiction and other sectors. The findings confirm that sexual health is complex and can generate wide-ranging impacts on other areas of health and other non-health sectors of society.
These different sectors need to be considered when evaluating interventions and making policy decisions. The preliminary framework can help guide future research and policy/decision-making. Future research could explore additional sectors not covered in this study and expand the preliminary framework.
性健康是一个复杂的公共卫生挑战，它不仅在卫生部门内，而且在卫生部门之外，都会产生广泛的健康、社会和经济影响（即部门间的成本和效益）。需要采用方法在经济研究中捕捉这些部门间的影响，以便为政策/决策提供最佳信息。本研究的目的是：（1）探讨与性健康问题和干预措施相关的不同部门间成本和效益；（2）将这些成本和效益分类归入不同部门；（3）制定一个初步框架，以更好地了解这些影响，并指导未来的研究和政策。
基于深入的半结构化在线访谈的定性研究。
经济合作与发展组织（经合组织）成员国。
具有性健康领域专业知识的专业人员，包括临床医生、医疗从业者、性学家、研究人员、为国际政府或非政府卫生（政策）组织工作的专业人员以及参与性健康干预措施/方案的实施和/或评估的专业人员。
采用有针对性的方法进行参与者抽样。我们进行了深入的半结构化在线访谈，以系统地涵盖关键主题，并提出新的想法。我们应用了框架方法进行主题数据分析。
共对 28 名专家进行了访谈。访谈中出现了六个主题：（1）与其他健康领域（即生殖健康、心理健康）的联系；（2）关系和家庭；（3）生产力和劳动力；（4）教育；（5）刑事司法/性暴力；（6）住房、成瘾和其他部门。研究结果证实，性健康问题复杂，会对其他健康领域和社会其他非卫生部门产生广泛的影响。
在评估干预措施和做出政策决策时，需要考虑这些不同的部门。初步框架可以帮助指导未来的研究和政策/决策。未来的研究可以探索本研究未涵盖的其他部门，并扩展初步框架。
