Teenage sexuality education - L'Infirmière Magazine n° 386 du 01/10/2017 | Espace Infirmier
 

L'infirmière Magazine n° 386 du 01/10/2017

 

FORMATION ANGLAIS

ÉMILIEN MOHSEN  

PROFESSEUR D’ANGLAIS AUX IFSI DE NANCY ET AUTEUR DE « MAÎTRISER L’ANGLAIS MÉDICAL », ÉD. LAMARRE, 2012

A pediatric nurse receives a teenager for information interview about sexuality education and the different means of contraception.

Nurse: Come in please Emilie and have a seat. I’ll ask you some questions and I need you to be honest. So, what do you know about sexual practices?

Emilie: Well, I don’t know! What we can see from the media is that people just do sex! That’s it!

Nurse: Ok. The first thing you have to know is that in the media, sex is not represented as it is in real life. And therefore, it is essential that you engage in protected sex.

Emilie: What do you mean?

Nurse: I mean that peer pressure and misinformation coming from the media make it confusing about what a healthy sexual behavior should be. So, you need to be aware of the bad consequences that could result from sexual activity, as well as the pleasure and positive results of responsible sexuality. So, first of all, have you heard of prophylactics?

Emilie: What’s that?

Nurse: Condoms for example!

Emilie: Why should we use them?

Nurse: Even without ejaculation, unprotected intercourse is not effective birth control. And if this does not lead to unwanted pregnancy, there’s still a risk of sexually transmitted diseases, or what we call STDs. Now what do you know about the STDs?

Emilie: I have no idea!

Nurse: They include chlamydia, gonorrhea, hepatitis B, herpes, HIV, human papillomavirus (HPV), or syphilis. And any of these can be life threatening. So, it’s very important to have protected sex.

Emilie: Ok. But are there any other birth control types that we might also use?

Nurse: There are many types, such as the intrauterine devices which are placed inside the uterus. There’s also the contraceptive implant, that a doctor puts under the skin in your upper arm. Also, the contraceptive injection, which is given every 3 months. And of course, the birth control pills, patches, and rings. You have to take one pill each day. The patch is placed on the skin for 3 weeks, you remove it for 1 week, put on a new patch at the end of the fourth, and repeat these steps. As for the birth control ring, you insert it in your vagina, it stays in for 3 weeks, you remove it for 1 week, and you put in a new one at the end of the fourth. You should know that there are male condoms, but also female ones that must be used correctly each time you have sex.

Emilie: Are there any other types of birth control?

Nurse: Yes, but they are less common, like the withdrawal, that is the male “pulls out” before he ejaculates, but you should be carfeul as this does not prevent pregnancy or STDs. There’s also what we call the “rhythm method”, that is you avoid having sex during some moments of your monthly cycle. But since teens tend to have more irregular periods, this method is less effective at preventing pregnancy. And lastly there’s the spermicides, which are creams and foams used during sex to kill sperm. They may add protection to other methods but are not effective when used alone.

VOCABULAIRE

Birth control: méthode contraceptive

Healthy sexual behavior: pratique sexuelle saine

Intrauterine devices: dispositifs intra-utérins

Monthly cycle: cycle mensuel

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs): maladies sexuellement transmissibles (MST)

Unwanted pregnancy: grossesse non désirée

Common phrases

It is essential that you engage in protected sex.

→ Il est primordial d’adopter une pratique sexuelle protégée.

Even without ejaculation, unprotected intercourse is not effective birth control.

→ Même sans éjaculation, un rapport sexuel non protégé n’a aucune valeur contraceptive.

The contraceptive implant is put by a doctor under the skin in your upper arm.

→ Un médecin pose l’implant contraceptif sous la peau dans la partie supérieure du bras.

The patch is placed on the skin for 3 weeks, you remove it for 1 week, put on a new patch at the end of the fourth.

→ Placé sur la peau, le patch dure 3 semaines. On l’enlève pendant une semaine avant d’en remettre un autre à la fin de la 4e semaine.

The contraceptive injection is given every 3 months.

→ Les injections contraceptives sont faites tous les 3 mois.

The birth control pill is taken every day.

→ La prise d’une pilule contraceptive est quotidienne.