Abstract
We describe the creation, implementation, and evaluation of an educational module addressing psychiatric illness in sexual minority adolescents, designed to improve knowledge, comfort, and competency of clinicians working with these teens. After performing a comprehensive needs assessment, we created a 12-page written handbook and facilitated training sessions for clinicians that discuss risk factors for the development of psychiatric illness, prevalence of disease, clinical pearls, and local/national resources. This module was presented in multiple academic and clinical venues, with preliminary results indicating that clinicians have improved their knowledge of the needs of and resources for sexual minority teens.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Edward Feller, MD, and Marshall Forstein, MD, for their guidance during the preparation of this project and manuscript.
Notes
1. In this paper, “sexual minorities” refer to persons who are attracted to members of the same sex, engage in same-sex sexual contact, identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or are presumed to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual.