The Case For "Privacy Rooms" in Nursing Homes

If you fear growing old, here's one more thing to worry about: it's almost impossible to have sex in a nursing home.

An op-ed in the LA Times this week explains why "privacy rooms" — places where residents can do anything they want — are necessary if the elderly are to retain their right to sex. See, basic privacy is elusive in most residences. It's practically impossible to masturbate in your own room without a nosy nurse or aide walking in! Without a realistic expectation of privacy, no one will even think about getting busy.

Of course there are progressive exceptions to the rule, such as the Hebrew Home at Riverdale in New York. The Hebrew Home was the first nursing home to develop a policy that protects the sexual rights of residents. The staff there is trained to respect a person's right to express their sexuality, while learning how to respond when a person makes sexual advances toward someone with a disability such as Alzheimer's disease or dementia.

I wonder if the aging baby boomers will bring a full-on sexual revolution to nursing homes?

Source: Flickr User J.C. Rojas