SAME SEX INTIMATE CARE

Twitter Thread – Woman who requires care

Henrietta Freeman @hen10freeman – 15 December 2022 – Twitter

Visit Twitter for complete thread and responses

🧵 The nerve of people being vile about me wanting same-sex care. People asking ‘what about lesbians’ is homophobic, they are women. This isn’t about sexuality, it’s about sex. I’ve been told I have an agenda, not wanting men to touch me is not an agenda. Here’s my 24hrs 1/
— Henrietta Freeman (@hen10freeman) December 14, 2022

Trans NHS staff can treat patients who request same-sex care for intimate procedures

TELEGRAPH REPORTERS – 2 January 2023 – The Telegraph

Trans NHS staff can treat patients who request same-sex care for intimate procedures, a report suggests.

According to a letter seen by the think tank Policy Exchange, North Bristol NHS Trust is unable to guarantee patients will receive treatment by a clinician of the same-sex if requested.

The letter, written by the former chief executive of the trust, Evelyn Barker, in February 2021 also suggests the trust does not require clinicians to disclose their sex.

In response to a series of complaints from a member of the public regarding the trust’s policies and practices, Ms Barker set out how it secures “informed patient consent in accordance with the law”.

The letter said that details about the clinicians involved in a patient’s treatment may be relevant to a patient when making informed consent.

“However there is no requirement for clinicians to disclose their gender identity,” it said.

It added: “The Trust accepts that there may be some exceptions where a transgender person will be expected to disclose their gender identity such as where they are required to undertake personal care on vulnerable people.”

No details on the exceptions

However, the letter provided no details about which exceptions these may include.

“This statement will be rare and, where the staff member has their Gender Recognition Certificate and is fully transitioned to their preferred gender, this will not apply,” it added.

It also does not define what “fully transitioned” means.

Under informed consent, a patient can refuse treatment at any time if they are dissatisfied with the clinician or treatment offered.

The think tank said a recent search of the trust’s privacy and dignity policies gave no indication it had changed its position since the letter was published.

It comes after the Equality and Human Rights Commission published guidance earlier this year surrounding single-sex spaces and legitimate reasons for excluding trans people from them.

Examples of single-sex services where trans people could be excluded include wards in hospitals where “users need special care, supervision or attention”.

Implications of policy are ‘considerable’

In a report exploring the letter and “Gender Identity Ideology” in the NHS, Policy Exchange said the “implications of this policy for patient consent are considerable”.

“Under the Health and Social Care Act 2008, a clinician is legally required to gain the consent of the patient before they conduct any treatment, test or examination,” the report said.

It added: “If a patient needed to have a particular surgery, they might consent to the surgery itself taking place, but would most likely remove this consent if they understood the surgeon proposing to perform the surgery was actually untrained.

“The principle of intimate same-sex care rests upon the notion that a patient can consent to a treatment only when they know the sex of the clinician treating them.

“A person’s right to same-sex intimate care must be upheld for the sake of patient safety, dignity and privacy.”

The report states intimate care can be “distressing and naturally undignified”, particularly for women who may have additional protected characteristics, such as religion or disability…