New gender clinic for children opens a year late

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A new gender identity clinic for children is set to open after a year of delays and the closure of the heavily scrutinized Tavistock service.

Around 250 patients who were being treated at the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), run by Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, will officially have responsibility for their care transferred to the new clinic on Monday. Become.

Around 5,000 children and young people across the north and south of England are waiting to be referred to new clinics.

The service was originally due to start by spring 2023, but was delayed due to what NHS England at the time described as a “complex” setup for a “completely new service”.

The new hub will be led by Great Ormond Street Hospital in London and Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool.

Health Minister Maria Caulfield said the new clinic would include “experts in safeguarding, neurodiversity and mental health to ensure children are protected”.

NHS England expects the center to be the first of up to eight specialist centers over the next two years, marking its opening as “the first step in establishing a new model for providing comprehensive support to children, young people and their families.” It’s just a step.”

In 2020, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated GIDS as inadequate, saying young people were forced to wait more than two years for their first appointment and had difficulty accessing the service.

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Cass Review prompts closure of Tavistock service

of Closure of services at Tavistock This was prompted by a review that stated the need to move away from single units and recommended the creation of community services to better support young people.

The research, led by Dr Hilary Cass, follows a sharp increase in the number of referrals to GIDS, with more than 5,000 referrals made in 2021/22 compared to just under 250 a decade ago.

Dr Cass’ interim report, published in February 2022, highlighted the lack of long-term evidence and data collection about what happens to children and young people prescribed the drug.

He added that GIDS does not collect data routinely and consistently, “which means it is impossible to accurately track the outcomes and pathways that children and young people gain through services.”

Her final report is expected to be released in the coming weeks.

In March NHS England confirmed that children would: Gender dysphoria clinics no longer prescribe puberty blockersThe government welcomed this as a “groundbreaking decision.” The drug will now only be offered to children as part of a clinical research trial.

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