Well, yesterday was busy. That #TransDocFail hashtag that I mentioned was far more popular than anyone had anticipated, which just goes to show how angry trans people are about how they are treated by the medical profession. This is the key to the Richard Curtis story. He may, or may not, have made mistakes with a few clients. That’s a proper subject for an investigation (and not for trial by media). However, his treatment of the majority of his clients is so much better than what they have got from the NHS, and no one in the NHS ever gets brought to book for their behavior. Indeed, it seems that mostly they don’t care. Remember, 84% of NHS staff believe that trans people should not be allowed NHS treatment for their gender issues.
Thankfully that’s not 100%, and those opposed to the use NHS funds for surgery may still be perfectly happy providing normal GP services. Someone has noticed, because this article about the #TransDocFail phenomenon appeared on a medical news site. I note also that many of the issues reported under the hashtag are as much a function of ignorance as of malice. If NHS staff got training about gender issues the situation might get a lot better.
It would also be better if trans people actually complained about how they are treated. The hashtag is a promising start. Jane Fae suggests that this may be our “Stonewall moment”. I’m not happy with that label, because the Stonewall riots were started by trans people. The fact that the name “Stonewall” has been co-opted by transphobic gays such as Ben Summerskill is a source of constant irritation. Nevertheless, the outpouring of anger was hopeful.
The other side of the story is brought to light by this article in New Statesman. I spent some time corresponding with Charlie Hallam last night and I’m pleased to see what a fine job she has done. I note also that she was up until 6:00am writing this article, and then had the alarm on for 9:00am so she could be available when her editor got into the office. That’s dedication.
Charlie had a word limit, and was barely able to scratch the surface of the issues raised by the hashtag, but she got right to a core point: trans people don’t complain about how they are treated by the NHS because they believe, with good reason, that they will only be treated worse, or denied treatment altogether, if they object. Indeed, the whole philosophy by which trans patients are currently tested to see if they are suitable for transition is to put as many unpleasant roadblocks in their way as possible to see how determined they are. The theory, I think, is that if someone can put up with how they are treated by their doctors then, and only then, will they have a strong enough personality to cope with how they will be treated by the rest of the world after they have transitioned.
What I want to know is, whatever happened to “do no harm”.