AACC World Conference REV4 ..read more

A Letter from our Founder and CEO, Dr. Joe McIlhaney Medical Institute announces several big changes. We are excited to give an update with several important changes, one of which is sad; Freda Bush had to resign as President/CEO.  But on a happy note, we will still have the privilege of her intimate knowledge and help as Emeritus CEO of Medical Institute (MI). At the same meeting at which Freda’s resignation was received, the Board “hired” me to become the new CEO of our work.  I accepted.  So, for the first time in twenty years, I am back in the office full time. And it is exc ..read more

Congenital Syphilis: Upsurge in Number of Babies Affected Science Department Staff September 2019 Globally, syphilis is one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted diseases, with approximately 6 million new cases each year.1 Syphilis is a complex disease, associated with a series of stages and various symptoms. It is known to be the “great imitator” as it can mimic other diseases.2 Not being able to adequately identify a syphilis infection based on symptoms alone can be detrimental to the health of an individual especially an expecting mother and her unborn baby. When an expecting mother ha ..read more

Transitioning for Transformation A Message from Dr. Freda Bush, CEO Emeritus   Many of us have heard of West Nile virus, but how many of us really know much about it? As a gynecologist and obstetrician, my practice did not involve diagnosis or treatment of such an illness and so I myself was uninformed about the devastation that the mosquito-borne virus could bring. However, I have gotten to know first-hand just how close-up that far-off sounding West Nile virus can be. On the morning of July 17, 2018, my husband, Lee, noted that I did not get up as usual and was not responsive to his cal ..read more

Overwhelming Amount of New cases of Trichomoniasis MI Science Department Staff July 2019 Trichomoniasis is known to be a common non-viral sexually transmitted infection.1 The term “non-viral infection” may initially present a sense of relief, confirming that a trichomoniasis infection can be cured with antibiotics.1 But this sense of relief may cause some to take the infection lightly and blind them to the possible severity of the infection. In 2016, the World Health Organization reported that there were 156 million new cases of trichomoniasis.2 This is an alarming statistic for a common, cura ..read more

2019 Clinical Intervention Marilyn Henderson, BSN, RN, SRAS On June 8th, Medical Institute will present our 2019 Clinical Intervention for Optimal Sexual Health workshop in Austin, Texas.  Our program was revised in 2017 and is open to anyone who works with adolescents and wants a better understanding of how caring adults can help change the behavior of sexually active adolescents and guide them toward optimal sexual health. It is now approved for 7.0 contact hours for Continuing Nursing Education for RNs and for Texas Social Workers continuing education. Is there any reason to believe th ..read more

Help for Parents of Teens Through Building Family Connections Training  Marilyn Henderson, BSN, RN, SRAS There is ONE factor that affects more behaviors in adolescence than any other: PARENTS.1 Ironically, parents often feel that they have lost their influence over their teens, but that is so untrue. Kids are listening, even when they roll their eyes, walk away, or shake their heads. There is nothing easy about parenting teenagers, and a healthy seminar can be a great encouragement to discouraged parents. Medical Institute’s Building Family Connections (BFC) is a 2 1/2-day training progra ..read more

The Medical Institute’s groundbreaking book Hooked was originally published in 2008, just over ten years ago. I say groundbreaking because it was the first national publication clearly explaining in lay language the neuroscientific studies of the adolescent brain that had been gradually finding their way into reliable scientific literature. Hooked: New Science on How Casual Sex Is Affecting Our Children showed how the new understanding of the adolescent brain provided very practical information for guiding our young people to better behavior choices.  The focus of Hooked was on the effect ..read more

Founder’s Corner Dr. Joe McIlhaney, September 2018 It has been estimated that men think about sex 19 times a day.  Women think about sex only about 10 times a day.1 Several studies show that approximately 60% of young adults between the ages of 18-24 seek out pornography at least monthly (including many women).2 Most adults have sexual intercourse.  If they haven’t had sex now, they most likely will in the future. One of the biggest fights school boards have across this country is whether to base their sex education programs on sexual risk avoidance (emphasizing waiting for sex until ..read more

More Cohabitation, Less Commitment Medical Institute Science Department Staff September 2018 Cohabitation has become an accepted trend among unmarried couples. Between 50-70 percent of couples today are thought to be cohabiting before deciding to marry.1 Cohabitation can be described as a living arrangement for unmarried individuals to coexist under one roof. Although there are many reasons a couple may choose to cohabit, it is apparent that most couples cohabit as either a transition or alternative to marriage.2 This is not to say that unmarried couples don’t have the vision or desi ..read more