ESSM Newsletter # 37

ESSM

Today

ESSM and MJCSM education & certification:

Where we are now and where we want to be

by Yacov Reisman

Sexual problems are associated with various

medical conditions and psychological causes.

The healthcare providers who are dealing with

these problems may be from diverse specialties.

Furthermore, sexual dysfunctions involve the

interaction of biological, psychological and social

factors, which necessitate a multidisciplinary

medical approach.

However, Sexual Medicine has recently been rec-

ognized as a medical discipline due to the revolu-

tionary scientific researches which elucidated the

causes and treatment options of various sexual

problems. Despite the growth in this field, Sexual

Medicine is still not recognized in all parts of the

world as specialty or even subspecialty, resulting

differences in quality of sexual medicine services

between countries all over the world. Therefore,

the quality and the content of the healthcare

provided by the sexual medicine experts should

be closely monitored and regulated according to

their medical knowledge, skills and attitudes,

after providing the educational possibilities.

European qualification for sexual med-

icine physicians and for sexologists

The ESSM is the first and the only Sexual Medi-

cine society, which decided and devoted efforts for

establishing standards for practicing this medical

discipline. In 2003, the executive committee of

the ESSM started to seek for the development

of regulatory framework under the European

Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) (1). After a

long negotiation process, the UEMS approved

the foundation of a Multidisciplinary Joint Com-

mittee for Sexual Medicine (MJCSM) in 2011. In

the beginning, the MJCSM consisted of repre-

sentatives from the European Boards of Urology,

Obstertics-Gynacology and Psychiatry; however

representatives from Endocrinology and Derma-

tology boards recently joined to the committee.

The MJCSM aimed to develop a curriculum for

Sexual Medicine, to set educational standards,

and to create a framework of assessment. The

first assessment for sexual medicine physicians

took place in 2012 and it has been repeated

biannually for qualifications of fellows of the

MJCSM. The assessment has been performed

with a MCQ examination conducted by the

MJCSM Exam Committee and included ques-

tions about all the domains of sexual medicine.

In order to monitor the practical abilities of the

healthcare providers, an online logbook has been

designed which allows supervision of a senior

Sexual Medicine expert.

The next MJCSM exam

will take place just before the next ISSM-

ESSM meeting in Lisbon on 28 February

2018

. Information and application will be soon

available on the ESSM and MJCSM websites.

To be eligible to take the examination, the candi-

date needs to be a registered medical specialist

or family physician with at least 5 years of experi-

ence in his/her country of practice. The candidate

is expected to demonstrate documents proving

his/her educational background, clinical experi-

ence in Sexual Medicine and active participation

in Sexual Medicine congresses, symposia and

seminars. The exam committee evaluates all ap-

plications and confirms the candidates who are

able to take the exam. Candidates who took and

pass the exam are able to use the title “Fellow

of the European Committee in Sexual Medicine”

(FECSM), which is a “mark of excellence”.

Currently, the ESSM is also attempting to improve

the quality of Sexual Medicine by establishing

standards for psychologists who are dealing with

sexual problems. The ESSM, together with the

European Federation of Sexology (EFS), con-

structed a syllabus on clinical sexology in 2013

and established a “Mark of Excellence” qualifica-

tion for psychologists through an examination

process similar to the MJCSM examination. The

first EFS/ESSM examination for psychosexolo-

gists was held in 2014. Candidates of this exam

had to possess qualification as psychologist

(or psychiatrists) with psychotherapy degree

and postgraduate training in sexology includ-

ing supervised experience. Those who passed

the exam were able to use the title “EFS/ESSM

Certified Psychosexologist” (ECPS). We believe

that these activities will not only improve the

standards of care in sexology but also will lead

to the recognition and protection of sexologists

by the European authorities (2).

Although both qualification processes for FECSM

and ECPS are developed by European organiza-

tions, they are available for eligible health care

providers from all over the world. Up to date more

than 500 physicians and 80 psychosexologists

from 5 continents were eligible for the examina-

tion and majority of them received the FECSM

and ECPS title.

Main educational activities of the ESSM

With the aim to support the training of Sexual

Medicine physicians and to provide standardized

educational opportunities in accordance with

MJCSM curriculum, the Executive Committee of

the ESSM founded an Educational Committee.

This committee initiated several multidisciplinary

educational activities:

ABC master courses:

These courses took

place during the annual ESSM meetings

aiming to provide educational opportunities

for residents and specialists in the field of

Sexual Medicine. These courses incorporated

endocrinological, urological, gynecological

and psychological components.

ESSM Syllabus of Sexual Medicine:

Right

before the first MJCSM exam in 2012, the

first and the only textbook in Sexual Medicine

has been published. This book covered all the

different aspects of Sexual Medicine for both

genders and served as a learning source for

the future FECSM candidates. In 2015, the

Syllabus has been updated according to the

recent literature and renamed as the ESSM

Manual of Sexual Medicine. This book is avail-

Yacov reisman

Urologist, Sexologist

Chair Men’s Health Clinic

Amstelland Hospital

Amstelveen, The Netherlands

uro.amsterdam@gmail.com