Personal assistance services and sexual health in Norway—a cross-sectional study of disabled people’s experiences and attitudes regarding sexuality and personal assistants

Abstract

Many disabled people cannot live out their sexuality or exercise their sexual citizenship without assistance. There is a lack of knowledge concerning experiences and needs related to personal assistance to live out one’s sexuality and how to support sexual citizenship when living with a disability and receiving personal assistance services in the Norwegian context. This study presents the experiences and attitudes of disabled people in Norway concerning personal assistance services and sexual citizenship. A cross-sectional quantitative survey was answered by 67 disabled people living with personal assistance services. The results show that 67.1% of the respondents would rather avoid sexual activity than receive assistance with these activities, 50% found it uncomfortable to talk about sexual health, and 76% feared that conversations about sexual health would make the personal assistant uncomfortable. Service providers and municipalities should acknowledge the sexual needs of disabled people and organize services to meet these needs without personal assistants feeling uncomfortable or exploited.