Sexual rehabilitation of the handicapped: the roles and attitudes of health professionals.

This article presents results of a research project designed to: (1) identify those tasks related to the physical aspects of sexual rehabilitation; (2) evaluate the roles, participation, and level of preparation of personnel in nursing, occupational therapy, and physical therapy in carrying out the tasks; and (3) assess the attitudes and beliefs of the personnel in the three professions in relation to their responsibility for sexual rehabilitation of patients. A survey of 115 professionals directly responsible for activities of daily living (ADL) training of adult handicapped clients showed that 66% did not participate in any of the six categories of tasks identified. In general, the physical therapists were least active in sexual rehabilitation. The majority of the professionals held favorable attitudes toward the tasks and believed the specific tasks were important to their disciplines but felt their own preparation was inadequate.