Vulnerability and Resilience Across the Gender Spectrum
- 1. Does Gender Engender HIV? Vulnerability and Resilience Across the Gender Spectrum CHAMP Panel June 11, 2008
- 2. Presenter Information Nathan Levitt Community Education Coordinator Callen-Lorde Community Health Center 356 West 18th Street, New York, NY 10011 www.callen-lorde.org
- 3. Callen-Lorde Community Health Center Our Mission Callen-Lorde Community Health Center provides quality health care and related services targeted to New York's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities regardless of ability to pay. To further this mission, Callen-Lorde promotes health education and wellness and advocates for GLBT health issues.
- 4. Why is this important? Many transgender people are in need of social services, medical care and basic access to employment and housing. Transgender people face many barriers to adequate service and health care, including discrimination, ignorance, poverty, prejudice and fear. There are very few health providers and clinics in the country that have supportive and sensitive health services for transgender people. Trans people are disproportionately affected by HIV and their needs, rates of infection, issues are not well understood and documented
- 5. Gender Identity Internal, Self conception of one’s gender We all have a gender identity- for some of us this matches our assigned gender, our bodies, and social perceptions and for others it does not
- 6. Transgender Common or accepted definitions… People who feel the binary gender (M or F) they were assigned at birth (usually solely based on genital presentation) is a misleading or incomplete description of themselves (GIP Center Care) Trans- woman or trans- man ? Language should be affirming and accurate Say trans-woman To refer to a person who was assigned male at birth And lives and/or identifies as a woman Say trans-man To refer to a person who was assigned female at birth And lives and/or identifies as a man Genderqueer: fluidity of gender Transphobia is, the fear of trans people and the hatred, discrimination, intolerance, and prejudice that this fear brings
- 7. Barriers to Health Care for Trans people Denied Health and Mental Health Care Use of hostile or intimidating behavior Lack of medical and mental health professionals who understand transgender bodies, identities, and health care needs Lack of informed care, research, and data Lack of health care coverage Sex segregated services: Denied access to restroom or housing facilities that correspond to gender identity Inappropriate name or pronoun use Invasive questions about genitalia or transgender status Use of hostile or intimidating behavior Forced to revert to gender assigned at birth to access health care
- 8. Limited access to Medical Care for Transgender People No Prevention Efforts No Transgender Education in Medical Training ( Abuse by medical providers) TRANSPHOBIA No Clinical Research No Health Insurance Coverage No Legal Protection SOCIAL MARGINALIZATION Low Self Esteem HIV Risk Behavior No Targeted Programs For Transgender People Mental health Substance abuse Discrimination (employment, housing, healthcare, bathrooms) Poverty Lack of Education Sex work Drug use Unprotected sex Underground hormones Sex for hormones Silicone injections Needle sharing
- 9. What does it lead to? Medical marginalization and lack of insurance can lead to unsafe injection use of hormones and silicone Lack of knowledge on the affects of hormones Lack of knowledge on HIV risks Lack of access to regular health care increases the risks of health concerns not being diagnosed or treated HIV/STI testing GYN care Prostate screenings
- 10. Transphobia: Impact on HIV & Health Care Lydia A. Sausa, Ph.D., M.S. Ed., C.S.E. University of California, San Francisco Department of Family and Community Medicine HIV prevalence among transwomen is higher than estimates from studies with gay men, as well as injection drug users of the same age in San Francisco. ¹ For transwomen is estimated about 1 in 4, mostly transwomen of color. African-American (35-47%) and Latina (23-28%) transwomen have the highest prevalence in San Francisco, compared to other racial/ethnic groups. For transmen is estimated 1 in 50, mostly transMSM and transmen who engage in sex work and/or injection drug use. Reference: ¹Clements, K., Marx, R., Guzman, R., & Katz, M. (2001). HIV prevalence, risk behaviors, health care use, and mental health status of transgender persons: Implications for public health intervention. American Journal of Public Health, 91 (6), 915-921.
- 11. Risk Factors Driving HIV Transmission in Transgender Populations Social Stigma -> Discrimination, Harassment, Violence -> Unemployment, Lack of Health Insurance, Poverty, Homelessness, Economic Vulnerability Transphobia Impact on the Patient/Client: Lower self esteem Higher rates of depression, suicide, self-mutilation Lower adherence to HIV medication Higher rates of violence, drug use, HIV risk behaviors Avoiding care for preventive and urgent/life-threatening conditions On the Medical Margins:Approaches to HIV Treatment of Transgender People Ryan White All-Titles Conference 2006 Presented by Ben Singer & Jessica Xavier
- 12. Risk Factors Driving HIV Transmission in Trans Populations Due to extreme economic vulnerability, mostly survival sex work Lack of Negotiation for Safer Sex Financial inducement for unprotected sex Mostly transwomen, some FTMs Substance abuse primarily as coping mechanism, Exposure to violence including by police Gender Identity Validation through Sex -> Multiple sex partners, Unprotected sex - false sense of security (FTM’s socialized in lesbian communities) - lack of knowledge (new to gay sexual culture, no safe materials) - language barriers (naming body parts and negotiating sex) - disclosure can lead to violence Psychosocial Stressors - e.g., isolation, depression and transphobia can all exacerbate substance abuse, needle sharing and high risk sex Culturally Incompetent Prevention Methods -> Low Perception of Risk Less HIV/STD testing On the Medical Margins:Approaches to HIV Treatment of Transgender People Ryan White All-Titles Conference 2006 Presented by Ben Singer & Jessica Xavier
- 13. Risk Factors Driving HIV Transmission in Trans Populations On the Medical Margins: Approaches to HIV Treatment of Transgender People Ryan White All-Titles Conference 2006 Presented by Ben Singer & Jessica Xavier Barriers to Access to Transgender Care -> Lack of Regular Contact with Medical Providers Lack of Medical Screening, including HIV/STDs Self-medication through Street Hormones, ISU Multiple Injection Risks: IDU, ISU, & IHU through needle sharing Systemic Risks Traditional reluctance by MSM-serving orgs to view transgender people as part of their service community -> Lack of trans-specific prevention materials, little or no funding for targeted programs, lack of information that trans people’s health and safety matters
- 14. Criticisms of MSM HIV Prevention Methodologies Used in Transgender Populations “ Existing prevention education is not inclusive of transgender people and often times makes assumptions about sex and gender that are not applicable to their (anatomical) situation.” - Bockting, Robinson & Rosser, 1998 “ MTFs can’t identify with messages and images that do not fit their body or self-image.” - Clements, Wilkinson, Kitano & Marx, 1999 “ MSM does not accurately describe male-to-female transgender who, genetically male, experience a female gender identity.” - Kammerer, Mason, Connors & Durkee, in Bockting & Kirk, 2001
- 15. Differences between Transgender People & MSMs ► Higher per capita rates of employment, housing & educational discrimination ► Greater avoidance of medical providers from fears of identity disclosure (provider hostility & insensitivity) ► Different health care priorities (access to transgender care) ► High numbers of transgender women working in the sex industry ► The unconsidered impact of transgender psychology and changing physiology on HIV/STD/ prevention & risk reduction ► Self-identification by gender identity, not anatomical status On the Medical Margins:Approaches to HIV Treatment of Transgender People Ryan White All-Titles Conference 2006 Presented by Ben Singer & Jessica Xavier
- 16. The Hormone Bridge A study of HIV+ transgender women seen in a New York Clinic found combining hormone therapy with HIV care: Stopped their self-medication of hormones Stopped their sharing of needles to inject hormones Increased their adherence with their HIV meds Increased their condom use Decreased their reliance on sex work to pay for hormones Grimaldi J. & Jacobs J. (1998) The HIV hormone bridge: connecting impoverished HIV+ transsexual sex workers to HIV medical care. AIDSLine , ICA12/98406957. Available online at: http://www.aegis.com/aidsline/1998/dec/m98c1575.html
- 17. Theory of Risk Reduction (Ben Singer, Jessica Xavier TIP) If trans people can safely change their bodies to become who they truly are, they will protect those bodies because people who are happier in their bodies tend to take better care of them
- 18. Transgender HIV/AIDS Health Services Best Practices Guidelines Provider awareness of specific transgender health issues and needs Hormones (including street hormones), surgery, silicone injections, tucking and binding, gender identity disclosure, mental health, medication adherence, substance use issues, disclosure of HIV status, categories of sexual partners (primary, casual, sex work), prevention of HIV and other STIs, domestic violence and street violence, sex work, discrimination and stigma, self esteem, homelessness, immigration issues, HIV medication interactions with hormones, Taking a trans affirmative, informed, and respectful sexual history