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Review
. 2023 Oct 20;20(20):6949.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph20206949.

A Review of Patient Experiences and Provider Education to Improve Transgender Health Inequities in the USA

Gabriel J Tanenbaum  1 , LaTasha R Holden  1   2
Affiliations
Review

A Review of Patient Experiences and Provider Education to Improve Transgender Health Inequities in the USA

Gabriel J Tanenbaum et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Transgender individuals are an underserved, vulnerable population. They face many inequities including barriers in both accessing and receiving adequate healthcare. These inequities are proposed here to be rooted in a lack of education about transgender people and their experiences. We begin by exploring the existing transgender healthcare research carried out in the USA, examining client experiences, provider education and attitudes, and the barriers transgender people face to obtaining proper healthcare. Secondly, we look at the previous research on educational interventions implemented with medical students and practitioners in the USA to enhance knowledge about transgender people, and increase sensitivity and awareness, while also increasing the level of comfort in working with these clients. The limitations in these fields of study are discussed in order to understand how to better serve transgender clients in the USA. We will do this through a narrative review to determine evidence-based best practices for educational intervention, uncovering gaps in the literature and highlighting where to focus in future work for researchers and practitioners.

Keywords: access to care; attitudes toward transgender people; educational interventions; healthcare provider education; transgender healthcare inequities.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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