Take Pride for Increasing Health Equity
The easy way to improve access to diabetes care for transgender folk is by talking to Transgender people. Meet Robin Taylor - the trans friend you didn't know you needed.
Inclusive Diabetes Care includes fostering a sense of belonging within the diabetes LBGTQIA community. The easy way to improve access to diabetes care for transgender folks is by talking to transgender people. We interviewed Robin Taylor, the creator of The Trans Friend You Didn't Know You Needed. When asked why Robin started this newsletter, he explained that it's so much harder to hate someone when they have a name and a face that makes you laugh. It was great to talk with Robin and learn more about how to meet the needs of Transgender folks seeking diabetes care.
Welcome to Inclusive Diabetes Care.
The IDC can help you unpack the invisible barrier to diabetes care: stigma. It offers professional training and the Inclusive Diabetes Care Pyramid, a visual representation and transformative tool that empowers healthcare professionals to see the benefits of inclusion in diabetes care.
Q. Inclusive Diabetes Care talks about the felt experience of belonging. Can you share some ways healthcare providers can or have made you feel like you belong?
A. These are the things that really have helped me feel included.
When an organization or institution asks me, "Do you have a preferred name or gender pronoun?" This indicates that I will be welcome and demonstrates an intent to meet my needs.
Eye contact is really meaningful to me when it comes to providers. It seems that when a provider looks at me, they are here to listen first. When seeking healthcare, I try to connect with the provider and explain something. It might be an experience or a feeling that is hard to verbalize.
Asking, "How do you feel?" "What can I do for you?" is also great.
A follow-up question would be, "Did I cover everything today?" "Do you have any other questions?" I love this last part because it continues the conversation and deepens the relationships.
I appreciate when the provider understands that speaking up for your needs can be hard.
Electronic charts
When I am referred to with the correct name and pronouns in my medical chart, the connection that was made during the appointment feels real. The 'My Chart' spaces reinforce and revalidate our connection.
Q. Ease is a basic human need, yet many trans folks don't experience it in their lives. What/How can healthcare providers and organizations create a sense of ease at a medical session?
The Trans community expressed, "We would all feel at ease if you believed us." This is especially true when talking about Hormones used in Trans care. For example, Hormone Replacement Therapy, HRT is often presented as a cut-and-dry experience. I can tell you that it isn't. The statement, "Testosterone doesn't impact your emotions." is a lie. I know that it did impact me. I transitioned when I was perimenopausal. I think the topic of menopause is often overlooked in transgender care.
I also would like to have providers remember that HRT does impact how we feel about our bodies. When I say, "I don't feel right on this dose." Get curious and consider if the dose might be too high, low, or not frequent enough for it to work for the person before you.
I appreciate it when the healthcare provider realizes that many Trans folks do research before coming to a session. We often know more about transcare than the provider. It is great to feel that sense of autonomy and empowerment when this is acknowledged.
Q. If you had one wish that healthcare and diabetes professionals could know/realize, what would that be?
A: The gender binary hurts everybody. Everything is heavily gendered. It stems from a belief that men and women are different instead of seeing that all humans come in different shapes and sizes that can't be confined to a binary view. Using myself as an example, there are aspects of my body that were engineered by estrogen. The question must change to consider how research is impacted, I mean, is this a man's heart or a woman's heart if I am talking about heart disease?
Q: Tell us more about your newsletter, The Trans Friend You Didn't Know You Needed.
A: I saw a need to see transfolk as human beings. I am a storyteller, and the stories I am most attracted to are about our humanity. So if someone doesn't know anyone who is trans or queer, they might be afraid or uncomfortable. When I imagined the newsletter, I hoped that you would feel like we are friends just sitting around the table, having fun, and sharing heartfelt conversations about being human in all of our messiness.