Filling a Gap in Healthcare for the Transgender Community in the Central Savannah River Area

Abstract

Background: Lack of insurance coverage and provider training are significant barriers that contribute to health disparities among members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. Locality can exacerbate health disparities due to lack of competent providers and higher levels of community stigma. The Equality Clinic in Augusta, GA, was created by medical students at the Medical College of Georgia to provide care to uninsured or underinsured members of the LGBTQ community in the Central Savannah River Area. The purpose of the following report is to examine demographic characteristics and presenting concerns of patients served by the Equality Clinic during its first two years of existence. Methods: The current report utilized retrospective medical record review from the first two years of operation to identify trends in patient demographics, presenting concerns, and service utilization. Results: Although the Equality Clinic was created to provide multiple facets of healthcare to the broader LGBTQ community, the services that were utilized in the first two years were strongly composed of gender affirmative care for those who identified as transgender. Overall, the patients served at the Equality Clinic were healthy with few chronic health conditions reported, however, a high rate of substance use was endorsed. Conclusions: This study may point to unique needs of transgender patients and highlights the lack of access to gender-related care in the rural southeast United States.