Sexual History
How can we reimagine the sexual history to make it better and easier for providers and patients?
The GOALS Approach to Sexual History and Health is a five-step process that streamlines sexual history taking by eliminating unnecessary, awkward and burdensome “risk assessment” questions. Instead, GOALS focuses on normalizing sexual health conversations and promoting universal, opt-out screening for all patients. The GOALS Approach is superior to traditional sexual health models because it: is more efficient, reduces implicit bias, is explicitly non-stigmatizing, and actively enhances the patient-provider relationship.
This is a 3-page description of the GOALS Approach, created by the New York State AIDS Institute, which explains the background and provides an overview of the five GOALS steps.
This is a printable, foldable pocket guide for providers who want to implement the GOALS Approach with their patients.
GOALS Three-Part Video Series
This is a three-part video series in which the developer of the GOALS Approach, Dr. Sarit Golub, describes the rationale and science behind the strategy, and goes into detail about how to apply it in practice.
Video #1: Reimagining the Sexual History (10 mins)
Video #2: GOALS Approach Evidence & Elements (22 min)
Video #3: Taking “Risk” out the Pitch (19 min)
