Many of us LGBTQ people have had awkward, if not discriminatory, encounters with health care professionals. A newly revised guide aims to change that.
The Fenway Guide to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health, 2nd Edition, published by the American College of Physicians, was written for clinicians, students, public health professionals, researchers, and policymakers to help make them and their practices welcoming, inclusive of, and educated about LGBT patients. Edited by Dr. Harvey Makadon, Dr. Ken Mayer, and Hilary Goldhammer of The Fenway Institute at Fenway Health, and Dr. Jennifer Potter of Fenway Health and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, but with over 50 contributors in total, it covers a wide range of topics, including a general overview of the LGBT population and our health care needs, health promotion and disease prevention, care across the life continuum, gender identity and health, and policy issues and global health. There are chapters on mental health, sexual health, HIV/AIDS, youth (including gender nonconforming children), older adults, and much more. The new edition contains approximately 80 percent new content compared to the original from eight years ago, including more on transgender health and on intersectional considerations.
This is not intended to be an Our Bodies, Ourselves-type how-to guide, but rather a learning or teaching tool that can be used in “a comprehensive LGBT health curriculum” or other professional contexts. Dr. Makadon explained in a press call yesterday that LGBT issues are not part of the curriculum in many medical schools. While these issues are not technically complicated, he said, they are nevertheless important to understand.
One chapter covers “LGBT Relationships and Family Lives,” including parenting. Written by Charlotte Patterson, Ph.D., Bernadette Blanchfield, M.A., Samantha Tornello, Ph.D., and Rachel Riskind, Ph.D, it reviews the many ways that LGBT people become parents, the financial, legal, and emotional barriers and support we may encounter, the stresses of transitioning to parenthood, and the characteristics of our families. The last looks at our children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development and their gender and sexual identities. (Spoiler alert: They’re just about the same as those of children with non-LGBT parents.) A separate chapter delves more deeply into fertility options for transgender people.
Much of this won’t be news to readers who have followed the work of researchers like Nanette Gartrell, Abbie Goldberg, and Patterson herself. As a handy reference for health care providers who have less familiarity with our parenting needs, however, it is an invaluable resource, densely packed with information and tips.
While the book may not be intended for a general audience, it is mostly light on jargon and is certainly accessible to anyone who wants to learn more about their own health or that of another part of the LGBT community. If nothing else, we should all be aware that it exists so we can recommend it to our own (or our children’s) health care professionals.
