Sex change OPD at St George, soon

After conducting a successful sex change surgery on police constable Lalit Salve, the St. George Hospital is likely to start a special Out-Patient Department (OPD) for patients keen to go under the scalpel in view of their sexual orientation.

The doctors said that once the OPD starts, St. George will be the first hospital in the state to have a sex reassignment surgery OPD. A senior doctor said that they will soon be sending a proposal to the Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy (JJ) Hospital to start an OPD; this move comes on the heels of numerous enquiries regarding sex change surgery. “Till now, six people have enquired about gender reassignment surgery and the phones have not stopped ringing,’’ added a doctor.The hospital authorities plan to have a separate team of experts and doctors under whom this OPD will function.

“The doctors will first conduct an overall medical check-up of the person. Once a patient gets the nod, he/she can undergo surgery,” said a senior doctor.According to experts, people who wish to undergo a sexual transformation mostly suffer from ‘Identity Disorder’ or ‘Gender Dysphoria’ due to which they hesitate to come forward and speak to doctor regarding their problems. “Once this OPD starts, it will help people come out of the closet, irrespective of society’s attitude towards them,” said an expert.

Meanwhile, Lalita Salve, a constable from Beed who underwent the first round of genital reconstructive surgery, was discharged on Tuesday. Salve was admitted to St. George Hospital on May 22. Now, Salve will be travelling to Beed with his parents, who have been in the city since the surgery. Dr Rajat Kapoor, who performed the operation, said, “We will call him for a follow-up after six months, so that we can create the full urethra,” he said.