Betty Dodson with Carlin Ross

Better Orgasms. Better World.

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No, I don't have sex at work, nor do I watch it at work or anything fun like that. I deal with the fallout from sex at my job. Sometimes we joke amongst ourselves that we could never step out in the community, we know too much. I work in a doctor's office, specifically infectious disease. We see patients with STD's (HIV and syphillis are the main ones) which are obviously due to sex. HIV is not only a gay man's disease (but in 2011, everyone knows that, right?), there are also many women who have caught the disease from cheating husbands or through other means. I also see MRSA (methicillin resistant staph aureus) labial abscesses. Even though MRSA is not an STD, it is very important to make sure you and your partner wash your hands before touching areas like the groin. I tell my patients that staph is normal skin bacteria and MRSA is a variation on that. A lot of people are carriers and don't have outbreaks. It's also why I don't use antibacterial soap. I have a good relationship with my normal flora, it doesn't bother me so I don't bother it. We also see patients with herpes breakouts. This is one area where things are a little different, I mean if a patient has to come to an infectious disease specialist, his/her outbreaks are more severe than the average person so what I see is not the same as what a person working for a primary doctor would see. One patient was suffering so much, my doctor consulted with some wound care nurses to find a salve or ointment strong enough to use on the affected area.
The thing that saddens me about HIV is that young people are still getting infected. What's more terrifying is that some see it as no big deal because he can just take some Atripla. While it's great that there is now a one pill a day regimen for this disease, it's nothing to laugh at. While I have never seen AIDS wasting at work, well, let me take that back, I've seen some patients with wasting gain 30 pounds after starting meds. It is a really good feeling to see patients who on their first visit look like they won't make the second completely turn around and regain health! But prevention is better for long term health.HIV is not a virus you want to welcome. I don't doubt that any of my patients would gladly give up having their disease if given the chance no matter how healthy they are.
You would think after this, seeing the fallout from sex on a daily basis, that I would want to run away and join a convent. Well, you would be wrong. I love sex and if I wasn't married to a man who values monogamy, I would seek out partner sex. I just wouldn't do it in a bar as a drunken hookup. Because syphilis is on the rise in my little part of the world and I've given enough penicillin shots to know I never want to receive them!
There's another casuality of sex that I also see on a daily basis. Women and men with chronic urinary tract infections. Well, what does that have to do with sex besides the fact that the parts of the body are close together in women and interconnected with men? Typically the reason both men and women have this problem seems to be because the bladder is not completely emptied during urination. With men it is usually due to the prostate and with women the problems are varied. I've noticed that some of the women are prescribed hormone suppositories in order to try to help. We've also sent some female patients to physical therapy in order to help. What I wonder is this, would the physical therapy help more women? But what does this have to do with sex exactly? Well, some women get infections every time they have intercourse. Here is something where a little knowledge and hygeine goes a long way. Do these women make sure that they urinate after intercourse? Do they insist on hygeine from themselves and their partners? Do they really want to take antibiotics that often? Especially the nasty stuff my doctor doles out. Would regular ejaculation help the men? Hmmm?
So I see the negative side of sex and try to take opportunites to preach for the positives of sex. Mostly at work all I can do is stress the importance of safer sex and give some pointers on how to do that. But I would like to do more. Maybe start small with some patient hand outs on how to practice safe sex (I might have some brochures written for gay men but I don't believe it goes into the specifics on how to properly apply and wear a condom) and how to avoid MRSA transmission (a golf ball sized boil is NOT something a woman wants on her labia) during sex (I would possibly advise abstaining until a MRSA decolonization was completed, watch each other masturbate instead! Just wash your hands first and wear gloves!)
So, I'm going to stay sex positive and try to be an advocate for patients to have a healthy and happy sex life!