Transgender and non-conforming persons' mental healthcare experiences: An integrative review

Abstract

Introduction: Transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) people in the United States face disproportionate rates of mental health disorders, including suicidality, depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders than the general population. Patients' experiences utilizing mental healthcare is a determinant in their care-seeking behaviors and treatment success.

Aim/question: The purpose of this integrative review is to better understand the firsthand mental healthcare experiences of TGNC persons.

Method: The authors sought to locate recent English-language articles that described the mental healthcare experiences of TGNC persons. To do so, only articles that conducted data collection with a TGNC sample were considered for review.

Results: Seven articles met criteria for review. Four themes emerged that depicted experiences of health promotion (welcoming environments, staff knowledge and response) and health prevention (enacted stigma, racial disparities and intersectional insensitivity).

Discussion: Themes indicated that TGNC persons have mixed experiences (excellent to harmful/damaging) when receiving mental healthcare. There is room for healthcare provider growth in skills to increase TGNC cultural competency.

Implications for practice: Mental healthcare providers and nurses would benefit from interventions to promote TGNC culturally competent care, including in-service training or continuing education for the current work force as well as incorporating TGNC content into pre-licensure educational curricula.

Keywords: Gender non-conforming; Mental health; Nursing; Psychiatry; Stigma; Transgender; Treatment experiences.