Doctors aren't trained in queer health. But you can help!
and you don't have to interact with anyone!
If you are a queer person, you probably have had at least one bad experience with the medical system. Maybe a doctor asked you invasive questions about your sexuality or sexual practices. Or, they misgendered you (even after you shared your pronouns). Perhaps they didn’t know what you were talking about when you asked about starting PrEP.
These stories are ubiquitous in queer communities, so this next sentence is probably not surprising: Medical professionals are not trained in queer health. A study released on July 7 reported the results of a national survey of Australian medical students. Overall, 89% of clinical students shared that subjects specific to LGBTQIA+ health were not covered in their curriculum. As a result, medical students graduate without basic competencies to treat queer patients. For example, only 14.7% of final year medical students reported being comfortable discussing gender affirming surgeries with trans patients. That number is only slightly higher for comfort in discussing gender affirming hormones with trans patients (21.7%) and for treating patients born with intersex variations (17.8%).
Why is this information not being taught? First, medical curriculum designers simply neglect queer health. An analysis of medical simulation case banks used to train emergency medical providers in the United States found that only 0.82% of cases explicitly mentioned queer patients.1 All of these 8 scenarios were about gay or bisexual men - meaning that no cases involved lesbians, transgender, or gender non-conforming people. The problem i much deeper than neglect because medical educators themselves haven’t been trained in queer health. For example, another recent study interviewed 24 nurse educators in Taiwan. Of those interviewed, 15 reported that they had limited knowledge and skills to serving queer patients.
Overall, these studies point to systemic under-education of medical practitioners in queer health. This issue is not simply limited to a single country or set of teaching practices. As a result, doctors routinely provide poor care for queer patients. Continuing education around queer health is needed for queer people to be faithfully served by the medical system.
Yet, queer health is broad and intersects with almost every field of medicine, meaning that the potential scope of continuing education is queer health is equally broad. To this end, the National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center has developed a free online platform to assist with continuing medical education around serving queer populations. While this is a major advance toward improved health care experiences for queer folks, participation is incumbent on individual doctors and nurses who want to improve their knowledge. In doing so, they can select which modules and webinars are interesting to them. Notably, this does not necessarily mean that medical providers are engaging with the content that fills their major knowledge gaps around queer health.
how you can help in just 5-10 minutes
Medical educators rarely ask patients directly how their doctors could be better trained. In research, knowledge is thought to be generated by the researchers, not the “research subjects”. This belief is incompatible with listening to recommendations from interviewed patients because it suggests that the doctors and researchers are not the only experts. However, we take this alternate approach starting today.
To help these providers and medical curriculum designers tailor their education in queer health, QSL is launching an anonymous survey to ask for your recommendations for targeted medical education in caring for queer patients. If you identify as LGBTQIA2S+, I am invite you to share your perspective by filling out this 5-10 minute survey.
I view this as an opportunity for us to share experiences and co-create knowledge that can inform decisions around medical education. This is a vital part of my vision for QSL because it moves beyond the passive consumption of written words and instead engages directly with the scientific process to build a better future. Ultimately, the results of the survey will be shared here at QSL.
I will keep the survey open through June 22, 2025 at 11:59p PDT. I would greatly appreciate if you shared the survey with your queer networks. The greater number of responses, the stronger conclusions that we can make. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. I look forward to sharing the results with you soon!! Thank you so much for being a part of the QSL community!
For comparison, this year Gallup reported that 7.6% of American adults identify as LGBTQ+.
The idea of our community creating information for our medical providers is profound and absolutely brilliant! Thank you for thinking of this, for taking on such a big project, and for caring the way you do.
Also, I would love to help analyze the data alongside you. Just let me know how I can help.
I completed the survey, even though it was much later than originally intended. I hope that’s acceptable. I included many ideas I’ve been reflecting on for a while. I wholeheartedly agree that action is necessary.
Due to my extensive medical issues, I spend a significant amount of time in doctors' offices, clinics, oncology centers, with specialists, and even in emergency rooms and hospitals. This frequent exposure has given me firsthand insight into just how misinformed many providers and "professionals" can be, as well as how strongly opinionated they are about these inaccuracies. It’s both disappointing and disheartening.
For years, I’ve wanted to take action because I stand at the intersection of two key realizations: first, much of the hatred, fear, and judgment that exists could begin to fade if people were better informed and equipped with the actual truth. Second, when individuals are shown how easily change can happen, it inspires hope and progress.