Addressing Sexual Issues in Individuals with Chronic Health Conditions‪.‬

Although literature that addresses the treatment of sexuality for the majority population has been written within the field of social work and other disciplines, little attention has been paid to the sexuality issues of individuals with chronic health conditions in mainstream social work journals. A literature search of Social Work Abstracts from 1977 to 2004 revealed only 44 articles addressing sexual dysfunction. One publication, The Journal of Social Work and Human Sexuality, was dedicated to the area of sexuality from 1982 to 1993, when it discontinued publication. During its 10-year publication history, only two issues were devoted to the sexuality issues of individuals with chronic health conditions. The purpose of this article is to provide social workers with information about the PLISSIT model (Annon, 1974), the "state-of-the art" intervention used for the treatment of sexuality issues (McCarthy, 2001; Borelli-Kerner & Bernell, 1997), and one that we have used in our professional social work practice with individuals who have chronic health conditions.