Geriatric Sexuality Inventory Key in Overcoming Caregivers’ Misconceptions

​Driven in part by the misconception that sexual desire diminishes with increased age, the sexual health of nursing home residents is often poorly understood by nurses, and residents' needs are often not met, states the lead editorial in the November 2013 Journal of Geriatric Nursing, a special issue focusing on nursing home residents' sexual health. The journal features a review of an inventory of geriatric sexuality, which the authors tested over two iterations and found to be valid in its content and internally consistent in its outcomes. The inventory can be used to help caregivers in a variety of settings overcome the misconceptions about declining sexual desire by understanding participants' preferences and values.