IJ TRANSGENDER - XVII HBGIDA - Abstract - Utilization of Health Care among FTMs in the United States

Editors:
Friedemann Pfäfflin,
Ulm University, Germany

Walter O. Bockting,
University of Minnesota, USA

Eli Coleman,
University of Minnesota, USA

Richard Ekins,
University of Ulster at Coleraine, UK

Dave King,
University of Liverpool, UK

Managing Editor:
Noelle N Gray,
University of Minnesota, USA

Editorial Assistant:
Erin Pellett,
University of Minnesota, USA

Editorial Board

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ISSN 1434-4599

XVII Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association Symposium
31 October - 4 November 2001, Galveston, Texas, U.S.A.

Utilization of Health Care among FTMs in the United States

GREEN, JAMISON U.S.A.
Co-author: Katherine Rachlin (U.S.A.)
E-mail: jamisong@aol.com

Female-to-Male (FTM) transgendered individuals face unique challenges in obtaining health care. In addition to transition-related services, they need primary care and emergency medical care appropriate to their needs. The relative invisibility of FTMs in health care settings has contributed to a lack of services and informed providers. Today, an increase in the number of professionals who are interested in transgender care, and an increasingly vocal FTM community, provide an opportunity to improve the quality of information and care available. This research surveyed FTMs across the United States to explore the current status of health care utilization in this population. The results of this research illustrate the importance of medical education for FTMs and also for health care providers. It is important to understand how FTMs utilize health care in order to design health care services that are FTM-friendly. FTM-identified individuals were approached at several conferences and support groups in the United States. Individuals were included in the sample if they agreed with a definition of themselves as "people who were labeled female at birth but who live or identify as men or male some or all of the time." Individuals were asked to complete a survey exploring such questions as: What kind of medical care do most FTMs obtain? Do they have primary care physicians? Do they go for preventative check-ups? Do they go for medical treatment when they are sick or injured? If they take testosterone, how do they obtain it and administer it? What factors prevent them from obtaining medical care? Results will be discussed in terms of the issues that are specific to FTMs and how providers of transgender-related services can utilize this information in their practice.