Gender Affirming Care
Gender Affirming Care for Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming People
Transgender and gender diverse patients can receive a full range of medical services through our Gender Affirming Care program. We offer hormone therapy, referrals to surgical affirmation and basic post-op care. Our model of care includes behavioral health consultants for brief mental health visits, second surgical letters and expert psychiatric care. We offer all primary care services including STI/HIV testing, Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for HIV (PrEP), Post-Exposure Prophylaxis for HIV (PEP) and care for people living with HIV through our Ryan White Program.
We offer patient-centered primary care in addition to gender affirming services, including pertinent and necessary health screenings with cultural and gender sensitive providers.
To see who is currently providing Gender Affirming Care services, click here:
Frequently Asked Questions
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Do you use the informed consent model for transgender hormone therapy?
Yes
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How old do I have to be to receive transgender hormone therapy at Community Health Care?
Per Community Health Care policy, we can prescribe hormones to those 18 years or older. Anyone younger can be seen for primary care and referred to a specialist.
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How do you decide how to prescribe hormone therapy to me?
We ask a lot of medical and personal questions, most of which we ask everyone, some are specific to hormone therapy. These are important for learning how to keep your whole body healthy. We also must make sure you are able to provide informed consent, which means you are able to understand and make major health decisions for yourself. We are committed to supporting people through an essential and exciting transition. We also take seriously our responsibility to do this safely so you can make your transition as smooth, easy, and enjoyable as possible.
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How long will it take until you write my first prescription?
This depends. Most commonly we will write a prescription on the third visit. If we identify health risks we may need to take time to get you healthy and stable enough to go through this life-changing process safely and comfortably. We know for many people it is easier to make healthy decisions in a body that better matches who they really are. We believe in shared informed decision-making. This means we try to make decisions with you, not for you.
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So what happens at the first two visits?
At the first one we will get a health history and order baseline labs. At the second one we will talk about your gender story and your personal goals for transition.
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How will I be treated at your clinic?
The mission statement of Community Health Care is “to provide the highest quality health care with compassionate and accessible service for all”. We are committed to treating all of our patients with the dignity they deserve. All staff should use your correct pronoun. Our electronic medical record, like most, is not well designed to capture gender diversity. However we do document preferred names and pronouns and expect ourselves to be aware of this information. If you are misgendered please feel free to politely remind staff of your identity. If you have any concerns let your provider or a manager know. Your experience is important to us.
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How do I get started?
Call the main appointment line at (253) 722-2161. You may choose to disclose your gender status to be scheduled, possibly more quickly, in a specialty hormone therapy appointment. Alternatively you may just ask to schedule with your chosen provider and they can help with system navigation after you meet.
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I wish my PCP could do this so I don’t have to meet new people, can you help them keep taking care of me?
Absolutely. Our Head of Gender Affirming Care is available to support community providers as needed. Please forward further questions on these services to GenderCare@commhealth.org