Michael Reed, MD, MSCP, on steps physicians can take to advance women's sexual health

Physicians can begin addressing women's sexual health immediately without becoming subspecialists, according to Michael A. Reed, MD, MSCP, board-certified OB-GYN in Davis, California, and a NAMS certified menopause practitioner. The discussion builds on Reed's proposed “Fourth Pillar” framework for women's sexual health, published in the International Journal of Sexual Health, and his argument that fragmented care leaves patients without a clinical home.^1-3

Reed framed the clinician's role as fundamentally educational, and that impacts can be made imminently.

“Physicians can begin to do something right away… They do not have to be sexual health experts. Each and every one of us are educators, so we can educate,” he said. “[For example,] if we just got out a mirror at every examination, explain what we saw, we now take the vulva and the vagina and have a real clinical conversation. It is no longer something that we examine in silence with the drape up and quickly, and not much to say,” he said.

Reed described the mirror as a signal to the patient that her concerns are heard.

“By bringing a mirror in, we are telling the patient that we hear you. We want to have a true clinical conversation about your vulva and vagina because it is important. We know that it has an impact on your life. And so the first thing would be just asking the question, bringing out a mirror,” Reed said.

His second recommendation centered on clinician education, ranging from informal, such as notable women’s health podcasts or social media platforms to specialized, such as specific external training.

Reed pointed to 2 organizations as central to that effort.

“The 2 most important organizations obviously are one is ACOG, or two is ISSWSH,” he said of the International Society for the Study of Women's Sexual Health (ISSWSH), encouraging physicians to participate in and help grow the organization.

Reed framed these steps as building toward a system in which women's sexual health has clinical guidelines, research infrastructure, and training infrastructure alongside the 3 established pillars of women's health.

References:

1. Reed M. Beyond Reproduction and Disease: Proposing a Fourth Pillar of Women’s Health as a Clinical Framework for Sexual Function, Intimacy, and Identity. International Journal of Sexual Health. Published online July 20, 2026. Accessed July 28, 2026. doi:10.1080/19317611.2026.2704787
2. Fitch J. Michael Reed, MD, MSCP, on proposing sexual health as a pillar of women's health. Contemporary OB/GYN. Published July 28, 2026. Accessed August 5, 2026. https://www.contemporaryobgyn.net/view/michael-reed-md-mscp-proposing-sexual-health-pillar-women-health
3. Fitch J. Michael Reed, MD, MSCP, on how a sexual health framework legitimizes women's concerns. Contemporary OB/GYN. Published August 4, 2026. Accessed August 6, 2026. https://www.contemporaryobgyn.net/view/michael-reed-md-mscp-on-how-a-sexual-health-framework-legitimizes-women-s-concerns