Most men have no qualms about seeking health advice from women pharmacy staff, even for sensitive issues such as sexual health problems, according to new research to be published by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society on February 29.
In a survey commissioned by the Society to support a public relations campaign on men's health, 72 per cent of men said that they were happy to deal with a woman on any health matter. A further 22 per cent would speak to a woman about most minor conditions but preferred to talk to another man about sexual health. Only 2 per cent would not want to deal with a woman on any health issue. Analysis by age of respondent showed little variation from these figures.
However, while they generally did not object to taking health advice from women, most respondents said that they would not seek advice at all for non-serious conditions - 56 per cent would treat themselves and 24 per cent would tolerate the symptoms until they went away. But respondents who did want advice were more likely to seek it from a pharmacist (26 per cent) than from any other sources, such as doctors and practice nurses (10 per cent), friends and relatives (8 per cent), or the internet and literature (3 per cent).
Men aged under 40 showed a greater tendency than average to tolerate their symptoms (30 per cent) or to seek advice from friends or relatives (15 per cent). Men aged 40-59 were most likely to treat themselves (65 per cent), while those aged 60 and over were most likely to seek professional help from a pharmacist (38 per cent) or from a doctor or nurse (17 per cent).
The campaign is being supported by Dr David Bull, a presenter on BBC1's Watchdog programme, who says that in his past experience as a practising doctor he found that most men tended to shirk responsibility for their health. He said: "We [men] think it is uncool to be seen caring about our health - especially if we perceive the symptoms to be minor. Of course, we are our own worst enemy: we spend hundreds of days feeling ill when we could be getting our symptoms treated quickly and effectively by a pharmacist".
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David Bull with pharmacist Sunil Patel in the Garden Pharmacy in London's West End during a photo-shoot to support the campaign |
Only 46 per cent of respondents said that they visited a pharmacy more than once a month, and 11 per cent claimed not to have visited a pharmacy at all in the past year. Of those who did visit pharmacies, 95 per cent were happy with the services offered.
Commenting on the survey's findings, the Society's head of professional and scientific support, Mr Roger Odd, said that there was evidently a major neglect of pharmacy services by men. "Men owe it to themselves to take the time to look after their health," he said. "The first step for minor conditions is to see a pharmacist."
The men's health campaign is the latest in a series run by the Society's public relations unit. Other campaign topics this year are medicines and driving (April), sexual health (June), child safety (August), ear, nose and throat ailments (October) and polypharmacy (December). Wherever possible the campaigns are run in partnership with other appropriate bodies, such as health promotion agencies and health charities.