Adolescent Healthcare Needs of Trans Children and Youth

Who is the intended audience?: 
Open to all
Who is the intended audience?: 
Allies
Who is the intended audience?: 
Family Members
Who is the intended audience?: 
Teen (13 - 24)
Who is the intended audience?: 
Educators
Who is the intended audience?: 
Legal Provider
Who is the intended audience?: 
Medical Provider
Who is the intended audience?: 
Mental Health Provider
Who is the intended audience?: 
Spiritual Provider
Workshop Topic: 
CEU Credits Available
Healthcare Access
Institutions (prisons, shelters, treatment centers, hospitals, education)
Mental Health
Parenting Gender Variant Youth
Primary Care
Youth/Teen
Do you want to restrict the attendance of this workshop to a specific group?: 
Open
Description: 

The needs of transgender youth are often lumped together with the needs of lesbian and gay youth, but the safety of their journey relies even more heavily on the cooperation of adults. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, a child’s gender identity is stable by age four. By age eight, many children can articulate that their assigned sex at birth does not match their internal gender identity. With the onset of a wrong-gender puberty, trans youth become incredibly vulnerable to depression and anxiety. For youth who grow up without having their gender identity affirmed, the rates of substance abuse and high risk sexual behavior are triple that of their supported gender non-conforming peers, and in surveys from as recent as 2010 over 80% of trans identified individuals reported thoughts of suicide, with over 40% having attempted it at one point. With healthcare providers assisting families in a proactive and affirming approach to a child’s gender identity, these negative outcomes can be avoided. This workshop will address common issues relevant to serving pubescent youth, including the right to access healthcare without parental consent, cross-sex hormones, and addressing potential self destructive survival behaviors.

Conference Year: 
2012
Time slot: 
2 June 12:45pm - 2:05pm
Room: 
104A
First Presenter
Jenn Burleton
An outspoken advocate on behalf of transgender and gender non-conforming children and youth, Jenn Burtleton has played a primary role in raising local and national awareness of the challenges these children and their families face. She is a respected expert, visionary and leading thinker on gender identity and gender expression. TransActive Education & Advocacy provides necessary support to improve the quality of life of transgender and gender non-conforming children, youth and their families through education, services, advocacy and research. Our organization works with the families of gender non-conforming children to minimize and prevent child abuse by providing parents with resources and support, and encourages youth empowerment by working with schools, pediatricians and case workers to ensure a healthy and safe environment for gender non-conforming children to grow up in.
Second Presenter
Sheryl Rindel, LPC, NCC
Sheryl Rindel, LPC, NCC is the Client Services Program Manager for TransActive Education & Advocacy, providing a full range of counseling and comprehensive case-management services to families of gender non-conforming and transgender children and youth. Sheryl is also a member of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), and serves on the Pacific University Center for Gender Equity Advisory Board. TransActive Education & Advocacy provides necessary support to improve the quality of life of transgender and gender non-conforming children, youth and their families through education, services, advocacy and research. Our organization works with the families of gender non-conforming children to minimize and prevent child abuse by providing parents with resources and support, and encourages youth empowerment by working with schools, pediatricians and case workers to ensure a healthy and safe environment for gender non-conforming children to grow up in.