Gender-Affirming Care With Transgender and Genderqueer Patients: A Standardized Patient Case

Date of Review: June, 2022

This resource, from MedEdPortal, is a 60-minute standardized patient simulation designed for third-year medical students to apply skills in gender-affirming care for transgender and genderqueer standardized patients. Each student completed a new patient history in a 30-minute time span and the rest of the time was to review the interaction. The aim of this case was to assess the care of students with six iterations of the same patient history with specific details relevant to gender identity and sex assigned at birth (SAAB) for each, however the students were not informed of the goal until after the conclusion of everyone’s case. The study encounters occurred twice, once in 2017 with students with students who completed the programs standard integrated LGBTQ+ health curriculum and again in 2018 with students who completed the same curriculum as well as clinical skills training. The case used transgender and genderqueer standardized patients and sought information from these individuals to make the case information as robust as possible. The observers were looking for the students to be able to use gender-affirming language, provide appropriate preventative care recommendations for the patient’s sex assigned at birth, and effectively discuss hormone therapy and gender transition, if necessary. Overall, the authors used the study as a way to evaluate and improve their LGBTQ+ curriculum as they discovered there were some gaps in learning and the practice of LGBTQ+ language. This case appears to be very helpful as a curriculum review rather than a framework or study for the students, however, it could be useful in allowing students to be able to practice these conversations in a controlled environment. Some of the limitations included the difficulty recruiting transgender or genderqueer standardized patients, a lack of patients that had undergone gender-affirming surgery, and faculty experts in facilitating and giving feedback in this area are required. This could be integrated into education for clinical students and learners if able to recruit SPs and faculty experts. –Ashti Doobay-Persaud, MD, NCEAS

Corresponding Author’s Email:

laura.weingartner@louisville.edu

Institution:

University of Louisville School of Medicine

Where was the Curriculum Implemented:

Louisville, Kentucky

Outcomes that Have Been Reported for the Curriculum:

Measured learner behavior in simulated setting

Outcome and Study Design:

Post Only

Level of Learner Assessment

Demonstration of skill in a controlled environment (OSCE, Simulation)