Improving the sexual lives of older Australians: perspectives from a qualitative study

Objectives: To examine older Australian’s perspectives on how their sexual lives can best be supported and/or improved. Method: Fifty-three, semi-structured interviews were conducted with Australian men (n=30) and women (n=23) aged 60 and over. Results: Participants identified a range of key issues and areas where their sexual lives could be further supported or improved upon, including: normalising the occurrence of sex and sexual desire in later life; increasing, and improving on the quality of, cultural representations of older adults; introducing policy, educational, and practice-based changes in aged-care facilities to support the consensual sexual expression of residents; and ensuring that sexual health campaigns and education are inclusive of older people. Conclusion: Our findings present clear implications for further developing sexuality education and public health campaigns, training and education of health care professionals, and generating social and cultural change pertaining to the acceptability of the diversity of sexual expression in later life.