Starting conversations about intimacy and sexuality: designing a tool for healthcare professionals and older adults in long-term care

Background: Intimacy and sexuality are essential aspects of quality of life for older adults in long-term care. Numerous tools and interventions are available to support healthcare professionals in their conversations about intimacy and sexuality but they are often unfamiliar with these, or do not know when or how to use them. Aim: To develop a tool to help healthcare professionals choose from existing interventions to facilitate conversations with older adults on the subject of intimacy and sexuality. Methods: A design study, comprising five substudies and 16 workshops, was carried out in inpatient and outpatient settings for older adults. Participants were healthcare and design professionals, older adults and their relatives, undergraduate students and researchers. Data collection and analysis took place in several iterations, with insights from one phase guiding the design of the next. Findings: A paper brochure and a digital knowledge programme (IntiME) was developed to inform the selection of interventions and tools to initiate conversations about intimacy and sexuality with older adults. Initial experiences with IntiME suggest it can support healthcare professionals in this area. Conclusions: The IntiME tool has the potential to improve person-centred care around intimacy and sexuality by matching the personal characteristics of healthcare professionals and older adults with available interventions and tools. Further research into experiences with the use of IntiME is warranted. Implications for practice: IntiME has the potential to improve person-centred care by matching the personal characteristics of staff and older adults with available interventions and tools Co-creation with older adults and staff plays an important part in designing tools for person-centred care Using IntiME may help staff become more aware of their own needs and thereby enhance competence in conversations about intimacy and sexuality