Integrating sexual and reproductive rights into the medical curriculum

All individuals and couples are entitled to enjoy reproductive rights, which are guaranteed through human rights that are already recognized in national laws, international human rights documents and other consensus documents. Indeed, they are essential for the attainment of the goal of the International Conference on Population and Development Goal of universal access to reproductive health through the primary healthcare system by 2015. However, reproductive rights are usually absent from the undergraduate curriculum in medical schools. This chapter examines the components that should be included in the curriculum, and ways in which reproductive rights can be integrated into medical education.

Key words: medical curriculum, reproductive rights, reproductive health