Consultation by: NHS England
Healthwatch Birmingham and Solihull responded to this online consultation on the NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Service Specification.
In our response we:
• Welcomed the holistic approach to assessing needs within specialist gender services.
• Noted positively the role of the National Provider Network in supporting consistency of service delivery.
• Were pleased to see the inclusion of a separate pathway for pre-pubertal children, acknowledging their distinct needs.
We also raised several concerns and suggestions:
• We questioned the flexibility of the system to meet needs identified under the holistic model.
• We recommended further consideration of how to support those who have already accessed medication from unregulated sources, to mitigate further harm.
• We emphasised that for endocrinology to function effectively within the multi-disciplinary team, paediatric endocrinology services must have sufficient capacity.
• We highlighted feedback indicating concerns about 17-year-olds needing to return to their GP to transition to adult services.
• We suggested safeguards for children and young people referred to services outside specialist pathways, to protect against discrimination.
• We stressed the importance of including patient experience data when monitoring quality, so services better reflect people’s experiences.