Open AccessReview and Analysis of International Transgender Adult Primary Care Guidelines
Author(s) -
Erin Ziegler,
Benjamin Carroll,
Erin Charnish
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
transgender health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2688-4887
pISSN - 2380-193X
DOI - 10.1089/trgh.2020.0043
Subject(s) - transgender , guideline , clarity , readability , medicine , primary care , scope (computer science) , health care , scope of practice , interpersonal communication , nursing , medical education , psychology , family medicine , political science , social psychology , biochemistry , chemistry , linguistics , philosophy , pathology , computer science , psychoanalysis , law , programming language
Purpose: To examine and critique current international clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) related to providing primary care to transgender adults and to assess their applicability to practice. Methods: A review was conducted to obtain English language clinical guidelines. Guidelines included in this review were obtained from published journals and gray literature. Guidelines were critiqued using the AGREE II instrument. Results: Seventeen documents were included in the final review. Eleven were specifically designed for primary care practitioners, whereas the remaining six were deemed applicable to primary care. Overall, across the CPGs, the scope, purpose, and clarity of presentation were done well. However, the overall methodological rigor in guideline development was poor. Many CPGs included useful tools that could be helpful for the primary care practitioner. Conclusions: CPGs can be an important support for primary care providers' clinical practice with transgender people, particularly after having received limited formal education in transgender care. Improvements in transgender health CPG rigor and transparency are needed. Future CPGs would benefit from recommendations on the nuanced discussion of gender concepts and interpersonal communication that can create conflict in health care interactions.