SEX and ageing. For long the subject has been taboo: but the three-letter word will be at front and centre for two days of spirited discussion in Melbourne next month.
Co-hosted by Alzheimer’s Australia and COTA Victoria, the first Let’s Talk About Sex conference aims to challenge the assumptions, taboos and stereotypes so often associated with older people and intimacy.
Topics such as sexual and gender diversity, sexual consent and sexuality among people with cognitive imairment will be discussed – all aimed at improving the health and emotional wellbeing of older people through recognition of their rights to sexual expression.
There will be a special focus on dementia at the conference, with discussions on the fundamental human desire of intimacy and how to help people with dementia to continue leading meaningful lives.
Themes include having the conversation, attitudes and values, the right to choose, and safety and health.
Speakers include:
- Dr Catherine Barrett, chief investigator and co-ordinator of the Sexual Health and Ageing Program at the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society, La Trobe University.
- Playwright and screenwriter Alan Hopgood, whose personal story, Surviving Prostate Cancer – One Man’s Journey, was published and then adapted into a play. He has since become the “health playwright”, writing plays about aged care, diabetes, widows, palliative care, geriatric sex, depression, dementia and incident disclosure in hospitals.
- Sex therapist, educator and author Dr Rosie King, who is well known for her work in the media. She lectures and runs workshops for medical professionals, corporations and the public.
The conference will be held at Pullman on the Park on September 8-9.
Details at ltas2015.com
