Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The waiting list time and the admission that this service has developed on an ad hocbasis proves that this model simply is not working or is not economical in the long term. I accept that the waiting list data are extracted and do not differentiate specific procedures for transgender patients. However, if we accept that there are 1,900 people on the waiting list and compare that figure with the number of people who have availed of a gender recognition certificate in this State, which would be about 300, although I do not know the number off the top of my head, those numbers are staggering in comparison with those who have availed of a gender recognition certificate, so that is a concern. As I said in my opening speech, it is not international best practice for a service to be so Dublin-centric and to not be available around the State.

Will the Minister of State commit to working with the Department and the HSE to ascertain if we can broaden access for hormone replacement therapy? What medical professionals would be able to administer and monitor the treatment? Will the Minister of State request that the Minister meet TENI and the This is Me campaign? The need to meet the Minister results from the fact that all the correspondence that TENI, the community or we get is from the Loughlinstown clinic itself. There is a bit of silence on the part of the Department, so that is a concern given that there were hundreds on the streets of Dublin at the beginning of this year.