Sex Knowledge and Attitude Among Medical Interns in a Tertiary Care Hospital Attached to Medical College in Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Abstract Introduction: Sexuality is one of the most basic human experiences. But in India, there are many myths and misconceptions about sexuality. Poor sex knowledge causes many of these problems. Liberal attitude without adequate knowledge is harmful. As a future frontier of health care, medical interns play an important role to improve knowledge and attitude. But, in India, very few students can communicate about sexuality, and friends and pornographic materials remain as common sources of sex knowledge, which are unreliable. Aims: To asses sex knowledge and attitude among medical interns and find its correlation with sociodemographic details. Materials and Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 60 interns using a Sex Knowledge and Attitude Questionnaire II (SKAQ II). Data was analyzed by MS Excel for Windows. P < .05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Mean age of interns was 22 ± 0.89 yrs. Mean score of sex knowledge of males was 25.47 ± 4.44, whereas that of females was 24.88 ± 4.77. Females had more knowledge of menstrual cycle and conception. Males had better knowledge regarding sexual acts in adolescence and its effects on marriage life. Sex knowledge and attitude were moderately correlated. Males had a liberal attitude, especially about abortion and masturbation. Conclusion: The result revealed a need to improve sex knowledge and attitude among medical interns through sex education and adding sex education sessions in the teaching curriculum. Better knowledge and positive attitudes toward sex will be beneficial to the interns and the whole society