Suicide risk to transgender patients as hundreds wait a year or more for help

TRANSGENDER Scots are facing a greater risk of suicide and self-harm because of unacceptably long NHS waiting lists.

Campaigners warn that more needs to be done to tackle the growing number of adults seeking help before it becomes too late.

The Scottish Trans Alliance says the NHS must spend more on services to tackle the crisis.

It points out that there are only four adult gender identity clinics in Scotland despite a steep increase in referrals over the past five years.

Yet latest figures reveal nearly 300 people seeking help have been waiting for more than a year for a first appointment with a specialist. The NHS recognises gender dysphoria as a condition which means a person experiences discomfort or distress because there is a mismatch between their biological sex and gender identity.

But this is not covered by the NHS’s 18-week referral-to-treatment target – resulting in delays that ultimately cause depression and anxiety.

Dr Jo Gardiner, an Edinburgh-based GP, has witnessed the growth in transgender patients, putting a serious strain on services and patients alike. She said: ‘They often don’t have the same support as other patients. Family and relationships break down when they transition, so it can be quite distressing for them.

‘Some patients are very isolated and alone and at high risk for things like suicide.’

Last year the average wait to see a specialist in Edinburgh was 324 days.

Scottish Trans Alliance spokesman James Morton last night urged the Scottish Government and NHS to invest more.

He said: ‘We’re talking about maybe three or four clinicians across the whole of Scotland – it’s really a pretty small drop in the ocean.’