Examining patient/provider communication among a national sample of young men who have sex with men

Background: While existing literature has documented less routine utilization of health care services among young men (compared to female counterparts), limited information exists about the health information being discussed among those who access care, particularly among young men who have sex with other men (YMSM).

Methods: A total of 1,874 YMSM ages 18-26 were recruited online and completed an anonymous web survey.  Data included sociodemographics, sexual behavior history, and items related to patient-provider communication.

Results: Participants were primarily white (75%), followed by Latino (11%) and black (5%); and most (83%) were covered by health care insurance. Most young men reported having a primary health care provider (69.4%, n = 1,299), with the majority of providers (72.4%) being male. Both gay and bisexually identified men were more likely to have disclosed their sexual orientation to a female provider than to a male one (p < .001). The most commonly reported topics participants reported discussing with providers included nutrition (55.3%), vaccines (51.2%), and drug/alcohol use (45.2%). Least commonly reported were topics related to sexual health such as HIV (37.5%), romantic relationships (27.7%), and anal intercourse (21.8%). Additionally, almost half (40.3%) felt either extremely uncomfortable or uncomfortable discussing with their provider that they had engaged in sex with a man.

Conclusions: These data provide one of the first large national assessments of health-care utilization among YMSM. While men reported high rates of care seeking, findings demonstrate the need for providers to engage young men in a non-judgmental manner about appropriate sexual health recommendations.