Prostate cancer impacts widely on patients' sexual health and wellbeing. Research shows that persons affected by prostate cancer want support, education, and counselling in this area. While health care professionals acknowledge that sexual health is within their scope of practice, few health professionals consistently assess or intervene to assist patients in cancer settings with sexual health problems.

The Sexual Health and Counselling in Prostate Cancer course is designed to equip health care professionals with the skills and knowledge necessary to deliver sexual health support to patients and families impacted by prostate cancer. Education, support, and guidance in the development of future prostate cancer specific sexual health programs are also addressed. This course encourages participants to:

1. Examine the ways in which their own and society’s, attitudes, values, and biases impact their beliefs about sexual health;
   
   
2. Increase knowledge regarding the ways in which patients and families affected by prostate cancer struggle to maintain healthy sexuality;
   
   
3. Develop the knowledge and skills required to conduct assessments and provide interventions for common sexual health issues that arise in prostate cancer care. Attention to issues of diversity will be integrated throughout.

Course Syllabus

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Examine personal and societal attitudes, values, and biases that facilitate, or create barriers to, sexual health care in the cancer care setting.
   
   
2. Understand sexual function across the lifespan, including anatomy, physiology, psychology and social/relational aspects of sexuality.
   
   
3. Demonstrate knowledge of sexual response and biophysical/ biopsychosocial models.
   
   
4. Understand the impact of prostate cancer and treatment on sexuality and normal sexual function.
   
   
5. Describe an integrated model of sexual health care that can be integrated into the clinical cancer care settings.
   
   
6. Discuss the role of your own discipline, as well as, the role of the interprofessional team in addressing sexual health concerns of prostate cancer patients and families prior to and following treatment.
   
   
7. Develop skill and demonstrate understanding of the PLISSIT Model as a framework for sexual health intervention.
   
   
8. Develop knowledge and comfort in discussing sexual concerns with people from various backgrounds.
   
   
9. Develop skill in intervening with common sexual health problems for patients with prostate cancer and for their partners (who may have problems of their own).
   
   
10. Demonstrate understanding of professional boundaries, scope, and ethics.
    
    
11. Describe strategies for professional self-care.

MODE OF LEARNING

The main mechanisms to facilitate learning in this course will entail eLearning and twelve 2.0 hours "Live" sessions with a faculty facilitator once each week using real time conference session using Contact North (“Live Classroom”) starting on Wednesday, April 8, 2026 - 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Toronto, Canada) Live sessions are mandatory for this course. We realize that being available for all the live classroom sessions may be difficult due to unforeseen circumstances so we allow up to 3 missed sessions.  The live sessions are recorded for you to review at any time after the session.

• Monday, March 30, 2026 - Access to the eLearning Centre and on-line course material
  
  
• Wednesday, April 8, 2026 - 1st "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, April 15, 2026 - 2nd "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, April 22 2026 - 3rd "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, April 29, 2026 - 4th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, May 6, 2026 - 5th “Live Session”
  
  
• Wednesday, May 13, 2026 - 6th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, May 20, 2026 - 7th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, May 27, 2026 - 8th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, June 3, 2026 - 9th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, June 10, 2026 - 10th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, June 17, 2026 - 11th "Live Session"
  
  
• Wednesday, June 24, 2026 - Final "Live Session”
  
  
• Monday, July 6, 2026  – e-Learning closes

Using guided activities and exercises, the small group will have opportunities to develop and practice interprofessional collaboration skills as well as opportunities to learn from, with and about each other.

A range of innovative learning resources have been developed specifically for this course, including case study narratives, video-taped interviews, and dramatizations of individual, family and interprofessional situations. Cases will provide opportunities for students to learn about diverse and marginalized communities. Online discussion boards will be maintained to explore course topics.

• Students are expected to use the online resources to do independent work for the unit. On line resources include content modules, case studies, interviews, narratives, plays, and other dramatic productions.
  
  
• Students are expected to take responsibility for ensuring that their computer system is configured for the course site. Computers used at your agency will need to be configured by your own IT department due to firewalls and other barriers such as administrator rights. Simple directions are provided in the de Souza Institute tutorials and will also be available on the course site. Please ensure that you look after this before the course video conference session begins. Failure to do so will result in frustration and inconvenience not only for you but also for your group. 

To view the full course syllabus and course timeline, please click HERE

Eligibility

This course is designed for regulated health care professionals in hospitals, cancer centres and the community who provide care to those expe­riencing cancer, including physicians, nurses, psychologists, social workers and others. 

Funding Opportunities: Please click HERE for more details.

Group pricing is available when you have 3 or more courses or participants. Click HERE for more details.

Please visit our Cancellation & No Show Policy.

No requests to drop the IPODE courses are permitted once they begin due to the nature of live participation. Do not enroll in these courses unless you are available for the entire duration and live participation sessions. A failed credit will appear on the transcript if participants drop the course after the deadline, or fail to meet the course requirements by the course end date.  

Payment: Full payment is required to secure your spot. This course has limited space, and students are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. When the class is full, students whose enrollment is ‘pending’ will be removed from the course.  

Participants can pay for this course online with a credit card, or send a cheque to: