The experiences of transgender and non-binary children and young people and their parents in healthcare settings in England, UK: interviews with members of a family support group

Carlile, Anna. 2020. The experiences of transgender and non-binary children and young people and their parents in healthcare settings in England, UK: interviews with members of a family support group. International Journal of Transgender Health, 21(1), pp. 16-32. ISSN 1553-2739 [Article]

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Abstract or Description

Background: Transgender and non-binary children and young people and their parents in England, UK are poorly served across a range of healthcare settings. Whilst UK equalities legislation and international guidance on transgender healthcare pathways protects this group from discrimination and mandates an affirmative approach, services in England are not keeping pace.

Aims: This study aims to draw on the experiences of transgender and non-binary children, young people and their parents in a support group in England in order to investigate their experiences of healthcare provision, and to develop some ideas for improvement.

Method: Data was collected with participants in a family support group which offers a parent helpline service, social groups for children and parents, and training for schools and other organisations. 65 parents and children from 27 families from the family support group attended participatory workshops where they were given a range of briefs: “health”, “family”, “friends”, and “education”. Their participation involved being asked to define their own interview questions and collect data by interviewing each other. Their interview notes constituted the raw data. Data was coded inductively by the author with respondent checking as a second stage.

Results: Results constitute the views of a small group of people, so cannot be generalized. However, they can illustrate some of the issues which may arise. Participants’ experiences elicited five key themes: professionals’ perceived lack of clinical and therapeutic knowledge; mental distress caused by excessive waiting lists; professionals’ stereotyped gender assumptions; direct discrimination within healthcare settings; and a lack of attention to parent and child voice, especially in terms of school-based experiences and where a patient had a diagnosis of autism.

Item Type:

Article

Identification Number (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1080/15532739.2019.1693472

Keywords:

parents, non-binary, misgendering, deadnaming, practitioner, school

Departments, Centres and Research Units:

Educational Studies

Dates:

DateEvent
27 October 2019Accepted
23 November 2019Published Online
2020Published

Item ID:

27323

Date Deposited:

28 Oct 2019 15:46

Last Modified:

11 Jun 2021 06:24

Peer Reviewed:

Yes, this version has been peer-reviewed.

URI:

https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/27323

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