Transformative Impact: Advancing Resident Competence and Confidence in Gender-Affirming Care Through a Multimodal Transgender Health Curriculum.

Abstract

Introduction: Transgender and gender-diverse individuals face well-documented health disparities, often due to limited provider knowledge and training. There is a growing body of evidence that emphasizes the importance of integrating transgender health content into medical education.

Objective: We sought to evaluate the impact of a longitudinal multimodal educational intervention on obstetrics and gynecology residents' knowledge, confidence, and comfort in providing gender-affirming care.

Methods: An educational transgender and gender-diverse curriculum incorporating didactics, clinical experiences, and surgical exposure was implemented within the obstetrics and gynecology residency program at a single academic medical center over 1 year. Residents (n=20) completed matched pre- and post-intervention surveys assessing self-reported knowledge, confidence, and comfort. Open-ended survey responses were analyzed using conventional content analysis.

Results: Residents demonstrated substantial improvements across multiple domains of transgender and gender-diverse care, including understanding of transgender care, confidence in counseling for gender-affirming surgery, comfort with hormone therapy management, and comfort describing hormone effects. Qualitative analysis identified themes of enhanced clinical awareness, shifts in professional identity through transformative learning, and awareness of systemic barriers that may impact provision of care.

Conclusions: A structured, longitudinal multimodal educational intervention significantly improved obstetrics and gynecology residents' preparedness to provide gender-affirming care. These findings support the integration of a formal transgender and gender-diverse health education curriculum into graduate medical education to enhance clinical competency and promote equitable health care.