The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) Calls for Improved Health Care for Trans and Gender Diverse Individuals

The CPA convened a roundtable of national healthcare organizations to discuss its recent policy statement and explore opportunities to work together to improve health care outcomes

OTTAWA, ON, April 19, 2023 /CNW/ - The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) is calling for improvements in the delivery of health care to trans and gender diverse individuals, who face multiple challenges in accessing culturally competent and gender affirming care. The organization has released a new policy statement, Gender Diversity and Human Rights, highlighting these challenges and calling on healthcare organizations and providers to make changes.

"There is a tendency to see gender diversity as an illness, when in fact it is the way that society and systems, in particular healthcare systems, treat trans and gender diverse people that creates psychological distress and harm," said Dr. Ada L. Sinacore, past president of the CPA and co-author of the CPA's policy statement. "The CPA is calling for training and education that equips healthcare professionals to provide gender affirming care, rather than care that can contribute to negative health outcomes."

On April 14, the CPA hosted a meeting of national healthcare organizations to discuss the challenges facing trans and gender diverse individuals in accessing gender affirming care and to learn about best practices in health care for trans and gender diverse people. The group reviewed the new CPA policy statement, which points to harmful practices such as requiring gender diverse people to be clinically distressed before they qualify for gender affirming medical care.

"Gender diverse individuals, compared to those who identify as cisgender, are more likely to experience anxiety, depression, trauma, substance use, and suicidal ideation, in large part a reaction to the negative and often violent ways they are treated by society," said Dr. Jesse Bosse, co-author of the CPA's policy statement. "The CPA is taking a leadership role in educating health professionals and others about gender diversity and, in particular, urging healthcare organizations and health professionals to modernize standards of care, and change approaches and perspectives that are harmful and get in the way of good health outcomes."

Over the past few years, through education programs for its members, the CPA has been working to improve how the profession of psychology supports trans and gender diverse people. Releasing this policy and working with other healthcare organizations are the next steps in the organization's advocacy on this important issue. In addition, the CPA will be engaging our provincial and territorial counterparts in psychology to call for provincial governments to support training and education for healthcare professionals to provide culturally competent and gender affirming care.

To read the CPA's policy statement, Gender Diversity and Human Rights, please visit: https://cpa.ca/

About the Canadian Psychological Association

The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) is the national voice for the science, practice and education of psychology in the service of the health and welfare of Canadians. The CPA is Canada's largest association for psychology and represents psychologists in public and private practice, university educators and researchers, as well as students. Psychologists are the country's largest group of regulated and specialized mental health providers, making our profession a key resource for the mental health treatment Canadians need. Learn more at www.cpa.ca

SOURCE Canadian Psychological Association

Media Contact: To arrange an interview with one of the policy statement's co-authors, please contact: Rachel Rappaport, Communications Consultant, [email protected], 613-462-5989; Eric Bollman, Communications Specialist, Canadian Psychological Association, [email protected], 613-853-1061