TIRUCHY: Weeks after members of the transgender community flagged inadequate facilities and fragmented care at the transgender clinic in the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital (MGMGH), the hospital has revamped the facility into a multidisciplinary, single-window clinic that will function every Monday from July 13.
The clinic will operate from 10 am to noon every Monday, replacing the earlier Wednesday outpatient service that functioned alongside the urology clinic. The change was made for the convenience of both the transgender community and the hospital administration, officials said.
MGMGH Dean Dr S Kumaravel said the revamp was aimed at making hospital visits simpler and more comfortable for trans persons. “Instead of moving from one department to another, they can now consult doctors from the relevant departments in one place, with better privacy and support,” he said.
The hospital also decided to appoint a transgender community representative at the clinic to will help patients communicate with doctors, assist with documentation and guide them in accessing treatment under the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (CMCHIS), Dr Kumaravel said.
As part of the revamp, specialists from eight departments, including psychiatry, endocrinology, plastic surgery, urology, general medicine and gynaecology, will be available at the clinic simultaneously, enabling patients to complete multiple consultations during a single visit. The changes follow a study visit by an eight-member expert committee from MGMGH to the transgender clinic at Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai in late June to study its functioning and identify practices that could be adopted in Tiruchy.
A member of the study team said, as a new initiative, a private endocrinologist has been engaged to provide hormonal assessment and monitoring, a key component of gender-affirming care that was previously unavailable at the clinic. The specialist will assess patients before and during hormone therapy.
“The idea is to provide single-point care,” said Dr Mano Ananth, plastic surgeon at MGMGH and a member of the study team. “Patients can undergo psychological counselling, hormone evaluation and surgical consultation during the same visit, reducing repeated hospital visits and making the process much smoother.”
A Oviya Mary, a member of the transgender community, said, “Earlier, many in the community found it difficult to navigate the system. With these changes and a community representative at the clinic, people will feel more confident about seeking treatment,” she said.
Hospital officials said the revamp would also pave the way for expanding gender-affirming services. Following the model adopted in Madurai, the hospital is planning to introduce procedures such as breast implant surgeries under CMCHIS.
