Editor's note: This is the first in a weeklong series about sexual activity, health and education in the Athens area.
The clinic at Hudson Health Center gets 18 to 20 female patients for annual gynecological exams -and that is just in a single morning.
Any woman who wants to receive a prescription for birth control from Hudson is required to attend a free sexual health seminar before having the gynecological exam.
The seminar is not necessary for women to get a prescription filled at the Hudson pharmacy, said Char Kopchick, director of health education and wellness.
Whether a student is planning to take birth control for pregnancy prevention or to regulate periods, she needs to know the side effects of taking a hormone, she said.
I enjoy teaching the seminar
Kopchick said. I enjoy watching the expressions on people's faces; it's like light bulbs going off.
The seminar includes a run-down of a gynecological exam -including advice about what to do and what not to do, such as jumping onto the exam table before asked to do so.
Annual gynecological exams at Hudson include a ThinPrep Pap Test, which tests for abnormal cervical cells, the human pampilloma virus and cervical cancer; vaginal screening, which tests for bacterial infections including chlamydia and gonorrhea; a bi-manual pelvic exam, which finds swelling such as ovarian cysts; and a breast exam.
Kopchick's seminar also includes advice about bathroom hygiene and how to locate the clitoris.
She also covers the many different kinds of birth control, from the least effective -such as the pull-out method -to the more effective methods, such as hormones. Kopchick concentrates on the more effective methods but said students can talk to her privately about alternative methods, such as charting the cycle.
Students do not need to attend the seminar to receive a prescription for Plan B, or the morning-after pill which must be taken in a 72-hour period after unprotected intercourse.
Sometimes people re-take the course, especially for research for classes such as women's studies or health communication, Kopchick said.
OU senior Leslie Hickey, who attended the seminar at OU for the second time Fall Quarter, said she thought the seminar was more thorough than high school classes and full of pertinent information that might not be accessible through school or family.
People need to be informed how their body works and how the medication will affect it Hickey said.
Since attending the session for the first time three years ago, Hickey said going again in the fall served as a good refresher.
A few things have changed since Hickey first took the class, such as more developed research on sexually transmitted infections, she said.
Kopchick said she believes sexual education classes should be required for both men and women.
I think that men need this information as much as women
Kopchick said. At least we're getting part of our population educated.
Because of understaffing, there is no men's health clinic, nor has there ever been a class of that nature required at OU. A forum to educate incoming students about reproductive health would be helpful, Kopchick said.
Hickey also said men should take a course about their own health concerns, because it takes two to get a girl pregnant.
Rather than have group health seminars, many schools have nurse practitioners who explain birth control side effects, Kopchick said.
For example, Miami University requires two appointments -one with a nurse for information and education and the other with a clinician for an exam and prescription, according to its Web site (www.muohio.edu).
Aside from Hudson, women can obtain birth control in Athens at Planned Parenthood of Southeast Ohio, 280 E. State St. The office offers eight different types of pills; Ortho Evra, the patch; and NuvaRings, said Heather Hintz, Athens Planned Parenthood's health services director.
Neither O'Bleness Memorial Hospital nor the Athens City-County Health Department provides birth control or prescriptions for birth control but refer patients to a gynecologist or primary care physician.
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