Dáil debates

Thursday, 31 March 2022

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions

Health Services

9:30 am

Photo of Jennifer Carroll MacNeillJennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that update. Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting Ms Sara Phillips from Transgender Equality Network Ireland, Ms Paula Fagan from LGBT Ireland and Ms Moninne Griffith from BeLonG To, an organisation that supports young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, LGBTI, people, particularly with mental health, which is one of the biggest challenges when young people have questions about their gender identity or know they are not in the right gender relative to their birth sex. So much of this, and what they highlight to me, is about having open conversations, and being able to discuss this with GPs and in clinical settings. They say to me that the capacity to have these conversations about recognition, treatment with respect and treatment with dignity, along with the questions and challenges transgender people face internally, often puts off further medical decisions. Access to these conversations, especially in child and adolescent mental health services, in addition to being able to take it further through the hospital system in a respectful way, is very important.

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