Throughout history people who are part of the LGBT+ community have faced major dehumanization and discrimination in the healthcare setting. Many have reported that they were treated differently than their heterosexual and cisgender counterparts, while others were even refused and turned away by medical professionals or were simply too afraid of how they would be treated so did not go at all. Being homosexual was considered a mental disorder for a long time and being transgender still is. The healthcare setting has always been a very discriminatory place towards those in the LGBT+ community seeing as in the past these people were experimented on like lab rats, being subject to tests such as electroshock therapy or even castration. Equality in healthcare for the LGBT+ community is a battle that is likely to last much longer.
One of the biggest, most embarrassing, and dangerous forms of discrimination in the healthcare system, is the fact that healthcare providers can refuse to treat members of the LGBT+ community due to their own religious or personal reasons. Not only is this embarrassing to the patients but it's also very hurtful to their mental health and physical health as well if they are in need of immediate medical care. Some states have laws against discrimination due to sexuality or gender identity however some healthcare providers do not follow the law or are unaware of the law. These laws prohibit discrimination against LGBT patients in most places that serve the public, also called public accommodations [1] . In the states who do not have these laws in place, it is legal for healthcare professionals to refuse patients based on their sexuality or gender identity. In a study done by Lambda Legal in 2010, "Almost 8 percent of LGB respondents reported that they had been denied needed health care because of their sexual orientation. Over a quarter of all transgender respondents (nearly 27 percent) reported being denied care and 19 percent of respondents living with HIV also reported being denied care because of their transgender or HIV status, respectively" [2] .
"IF YOU ARE GOING TO PURSUE A PROFESSION WHERE YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE PUBLIC THEN YOU MUST DEAL WITH THE WHOLE PUBLIC, NOT JUST THE PEOPLE YOU LIKE." Just because a patient is not refused, does not mean that the healthcare professional is willing to treat them equally to other patients, especially if the law prohibits the patient from being turned away. Many LGBT+ community members have mentioned that they were treated differently, with healthcare professionals using harsher language or being physically harsher. In an interview, Gabriel Carrasquillo, a financial donor and volunteer for the Human Rights Campaign, recalls that, " At the beginning of the AIDS crisis (early 1980'S) there was very little information. I remember once a health care provider putting on an extra pair of rubber gloves on to examine me" [3]. It's as though this health care provider believed a homosexual man was toxic or dangerous. This discriminatory treatment is humiliating and this kind of treatment can lead to LGBT+ community patients to be so scared of reliving that experience that they they do not go seek medical help at all. In Lambda Legals survey, Tony Ferraiolo, a transgender man, was interviewed about his experience. He said, "I received a phone call telling me that the doctor did not take cases like mine and referring me to a hospital. I remember feeling like a freak. I called the second number. The receptionist told me they didn’t deal with transgender men either. After I got over the hurt, I called another doctor’s office. The receptionist told me that their office welcomed transgender clients. I told the doctor that I wanted a full hysterectomy. (...) She was hiding her trans-phobia behind a bogus argument and dismissing a very real medical need. I told her that there was something wrong: “I am a man with a uterus. I need to have all female reproductive parts removed. I AM A MAN!” She refused. I left her office feeling like a freak again, vulnerable and depressed" [2] . Mr.Ferraiolo states he felt like a "freak", as if he weren't human. He was turned away twice but thankfully he still had the courage to call a third location. However just because he could make the third call does not mean others would have that courage and they would be left in fear and without the medical help the need. In an interview with Mr.Elliot Hobaugh, a transgender man, he says that although he personally has not been discriminated against in a medical setting, if it did happen he would feel "dehumanized and less of the rest |
States Prohibiting Discrimination In the Healthcare System Based on Gender Identity California Iowa Oregon Colorado Maine Rhode Island District of Columbia Minnesota Vermont Hawaii New Jersey Washington Illinois New Mexico States Prohibiting Discrimination In the Healthcare System Based on Sexual Orientation California Maine New Mexico Colorado Maryland New York Connecticut Massachusetts Oregon Delaware Minnesota Rhode Island District of Columbia Nevada Vermont Hawaii New Hampshire Washington Illinois New Jersey Wisconsin Iowa |
than others". However he said he has previously felt afraid to go to a medical center in fear of being discriminated against. He also stated that, "It is heartbreaking to think that you can be left to die just because of something you can't control" [4]. These healthcare providers treated people of the LGBT+ are treated as if they all posed a health risk to the person providing their medical treatment. Not only does turning away an LGBT+ patient potentially harm them physically, but also mentally, leaving the turned away patient feeling dehumanized, embarrassed, and sometimes hateful towards themselves for being different. Being part of the LGBT+ community is not a choice but a part of ones personality which they are born with. Just because the people of LGBT+ do not conform to societies standards does not mean healthcare providers have the right to turn them away and especially if they are in need of immediate medical care. No religious or personal belief of a doctor is more important than a human life at stake.
The lack of training for health care professionals in regards to the LGBT+ community makes it more difficult to rid the healthcare field of LGBT+ discrimination because without the proper training these professionals are left uneducated and free to make their own judged opinions which are likely not based on fact. In the 1990's , "nearly one-fifth of physicians in a California survey endorsed homophobic viewpoints, and 18% reported feeling uncomfortable treating gay or lesbian patients" [5]. On average, about 5 hours , of 4 years of medical school, are spent on LGBT+ training [6], and this leads to uneducated healthcare professional which act on their own assumptions and not facts.
Homosexuality was considered a mental illness by the World Health Organization until 1973 while being transgender is still considered a mental illness. In the past people were terrified to come out as a homosexual or as being transgender due to the awful stigma associated along with it. Due to the fact that homosexuality and being transgender were seen as mental illnesses, medical professionals believed that they could find a cure and they came up with "conversion therapy". In this conversion therapy, LGBT+ patients were tested on like lab rats. They were subject to torturous tests such as electroshock therapy and castration [5]. These patients were treated like animals not humans. The amount of mental and physical trauma caused to these patients is unfathomable. One newspaper article from 1965 says that homosexuality can't be "cured" is because "they rarely try treatment. Too many of them actually believe they are happy and satisfied they way they are" [7] . Just because LGBT+ people were happy with who they were they were discriminated against and in the eyes of society they were supposed to believe hey were ill and were to seek treatment.
The lack of training for health care professionals in regards to the LGBT+ community makes it more difficult to rid the healthcare field of LGBT+ discrimination because without the proper training these professionals are left uneducated and free to make their own judged opinions which are likely not based on fact. In the 1990's , "nearly one-fifth of physicians in a California survey endorsed homophobic viewpoints, and 18% reported feeling uncomfortable treating gay or lesbian patients" [5]. On average, about 5 hours , of 4 years of medical school, are spent on LGBT+ training [6], and this leads to uneducated healthcare professional which act on their own assumptions and not facts.
Homosexuality was considered a mental illness by the World Health Organization until 1973 while being transgender is still considered a mental illness. In the past people were terrified to come out as a homosexual or as being transgender due to the awful stigma associated along with it. Due to the fact that homosexuality and being transgender were seen as mental illnesses, medical professionals believed that they could find a cure and they came up with "conversion therapy". In this conversion therapy, LGBT+ patients were tested on like lab rats. They were subject to torturous tests such as electroshock therapy and castration [5]. These patients were treated like animals not humans. The amount of mental and physical trauma caused to these patients is unfathomable. One newspaper article from 1965 says that homosexuality can't be "cured" is because "they rarely try treatment. Too many of them actually believe they are happy and satisfied they way they are" [7] . Just because LGBT+ people were happy with who they were they were discriminated against and in the eyes of society they were supposed to believe hey were ill and were to seek treatment.
A major historical event which triggered a whole new wave of discrimination against the LGBT+ community was the AIDS epidemic of the 1980's. The disease was mainly among gay men which is why the stigma of AIDS was associated with homosexuals. According to Mr. Carrasquillo, there was not much information on the disease while it was running rampant [3]. Without proper information, the public formulated theories using the facts they knew, and what they knew was that mainly homosexuals were affected, this led to the public's conclusion that the AIDS epidemic was the fault of homosexuals. The public became afraid and this led to the out-lash at the LGBT+ community.
Section by: Nicole Solarz
Sources
[1] Michon, Kathleen, J.D. "Health Care Antidiscrimination Laws Protecting Gays and Lesbians." NOLO. Accessed June 11, 2017. http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/health-care-antidiscrimination-laws-protecting-32296.htm.
[2] Lambda Legal. "When Health Care isn't Caring." Lambda Legal. 2010. Accessed June 11, 2017. https://www.lambdalegal.org/sites/default/files/publications/downloads/whcic-report_when-health-care-isnt-caring.pdf.
[3] Carrasquillo, Gabriel. E-mail interview by Nicole Solarz. June 11, 2017.
[4] Hobaugh, Elliot. E-mail interview by Samantha Manzzullo. June 12, 2017.
[5] Ard, Kevin L., MD, and Harvey J. Makadon, MD. "IMPROVING THE HEALTH CARE OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PEOPLE: Understanding and Eliminating Health Disparities." LGBT Health Education. Accessed June 12, 2017. https://www.lgbthealtheducation.org/wp-content/uploads/Improving-the-Health-of-LGBT-People.pdf.
[6] Tortelli, Brett, MD. "The Fear of Discrimination in LGBT Healthcare." Institute for Public Health. September 14, 2016. Accessed June 12, 2017. https://publichealth.wustl.edu/fear-discrimination-lgbt-healthcare/.
[7] TIME. "Homosexuals Can Be Cured." Time. February 12, 1965. Accessed June 13, 2017. http://time.com/3705745/history-therapy-hadden/.
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[2] Lambda Legal. "When Health Care isn't Caring." Lambda Legal. 2010. Accessed June 11, 2017. https://www.lambdalegal.org/sites/default/files/publications/downloads/whcic-report_when-health-care-isnt-caring.pdf.
[3] Carrasquillo, Gabriel. E-mail interview by Nicole Solarz. June 11, 2017.
[4] Hobaugh, Elliot. E-mail interview by Samantha Manzzullo. June 12, 2017.
[5] Ard, Kevin L., MD, and Harvey J. Makadon, MD. "IMPROVING THE HEALTH CARE OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PEOPLE: Understanding and Eliminating Health Disparities." LGBT Health Education. Accessed June 12, 2017. https://www.lgbthealtheducation.org/wp-content/uploads/Improving-the-Health-of-LGBT-People.pdf.
[6] Tortelli, Brett, MD. "The Fear of Discrimination in LGBT Healthcare." Institute for Public Health. September 14, 2016. Accessed June 12, 2017. https://publichealth.wustl.edu/fear-discrimination-lgbt-healthcare/.
[7] TIME. "Homosexuals Can Be Cured." Time. February 12, 1965. Accessed June 13, 2017. http://time.com/3705745/history-therapy-hadden/.
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