Victoria Hospital sees dip in sex reassignment surgeries post-Covid
BENGALURU: Victoria Hospital, the only government-run hospital to perform sex reassignment surgeries, has seen a massive drop with only two to three procedures performed annually post-Covid. Dr Ramesh TK, professor and head of department (plastic surgery), Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI), Victoria Hospital, told TNIE, “Previously around 100 sex reassignment surgeries would be performed in our department, most of them being male to female transformations. However, in the post-pandemic years we have only performed 2-3 surgeries annually.”
The decline cannot be attributed to a particular reason, he said. Prior to the pandemic, many NGOs and social organisations would guide people wishing to undergo the surgery and people would turn up in large numbers seeking consultations on the procedures. But post-pandemic, those numbers have seen a significant decline.
Members of the LGBTQIA+ community too showed apprehension in availing health services in public institutions due to continued queerphobic discrimination. A transgender woman, seeking anonymity, said, “The doctors in government hospitals do not treat us properly. We do not feel accepted. Many of them do not even have the skills to be guiding us for treatments like breast augmentation or other sex reassignment-related procedures like hysterectomy, orchiectomy. Most government hospitals do not have the procedures available in the private sector. So, we end up paying huge sums of money to avail treatment in private hospitals.”
Speaking from personal experience, the transgender woman said, “I have undergone breast enhancement surgery and consume hormone pills regularly which causes a lot of effects on my body. Often doctors in a government setup did not have knowledge of such issues. I would end up consulting private medical practitioners.”
Recently, in an exclusive health camp organised for the community, Dr Indira C Reddy, secretary, Bangalore Society of Obstetrician and Gynaecology, examined a trans person, who was seeing a doctor for the first time in 40 years.
Dr Reddy explained that members of the community suffer from multiple health issues, but refrain from going to hospitals due to continued stigma associated with them. There is a dire need to sensitise healthcare professionals to not treat them differently and ensure an inclusive environment for them.