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Original poster

Gender rather than sex on medical form

63 replies

TransposersArePosers · 04/10/2018 09:08

I have had a form for my primary aged child's flu immunisation and lo and behold, under child's details they have asked for Gender: Girl or Boy

This probably wouldn't have bothered me last Winter to be fair, but now that I seem to have become GC (thanks to the lovely adult human females of this board!), I am fuming. I will contact the NHS trust that has sent out this document, but would like to know whether phoning or email would be better? Or both? I want to cross out Gender on the form and replace it with sex and write Female and Male.

Surely when it comes to medical forms we should be clear as to what sex the patient is? FFS

OP posts:
Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 22/10/2018 17:06

Aha! Thanks Sleepyo.

Maybe I need to copy Dr Varney into my emails? It's great that he's looking into LGBT inequalities in healthcare, but that still doesn't explain why an NHS form regarding the administration of a live vaccine doesn't want to know what the sex of the recipient is. Surely just for the reporting of adverse reactions this is basic stuff that needs to be known.

Maybe I should add a hypothetical question in my next email of 'I have a female child, who identifies as a boy, which box do I tick?' and see where that gets me.

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Her0utdoors · 22/10/2018 16:56

Kat my local Sexual Health clinic form asks 'sex at birth' and 'gender identity ' both questions fiving the option of M/F. My replies were 'sex is immutable' and 'those aren't gender itentities'.
My response to 'gender M/F?' on one of dd school admission forms was that if the data they need to collect is whether the child is male or female them the question they should ask is what is the child's sex. I assume the school has me down as a nut job.

Sleepyo · 22/10/2018 16:34

publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/author/justin-varney/

Just popping this out there, in case it sheds any light?

Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 22/10/2018 15:46

It's become a matter of principle to me and I will now continue until someone gives me some kind of response. I can't believe I'm the first person to query this. Or maybe I am and that is why they don't know what to say! The fact that no one has even bothered to try and answer the question has irked me somewhat.

OP posts:
newmumwithquestions · 22/10/2018 15:33

I’m loving your persistence OP!

Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 22/10/2018 15:29

So it's now 2 weeks since I emailed Public Health England. No one has responded so I rang today and they asked for a phone number for them to not ring me on!

And I then rang the local PHE place, who asked what my query was and when I said I wanted to know why the immunisation form asked for gender and not sex there was a long silence and the person I was speaking to didn't know. What a surprise! So I now have ANOTHER email address to try. I think I'll just copy and paste the email I sent to PHE and see where that gets me. It can't be THAT hard to answer, surely?

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Mrsbadger77 · 09/10/2018 17:43

I crossed out gender and wrote sex on my DD's nursery application and noted it was last updated in 2014, so this shit has been going on for years and I'm only waking up it now.

KatVonGulag · 09/10/2018 17:39

I got asked my gender in the sexual health clinic.
FFS
Get a grip, it's about biology not your feelzzzzzz

Elephantinacravat · 09/10/2018 17:34

I didn't even notice this on the flu form actually, and normally this stuff really annoys me! Maybe I haven't completed my journey through the radicalisation portal...... To be fair I was preoccupied with another health aspect of the flu vaccine so that is probably why.

FekkoTheLawyer · 09/10/2018 17:27

That's what I do. It isn't always brief if I get on a roll...

ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 09/10/2018 17:26

My new job online application asked me my gender. As it was online I couldn’t even cross gender out and write sex in its place!

Did it not have an "other" box where you could state that your sex was female and give a brief lecture on the difference between sex and gender and why it is important?

FekkoTheLawyer · 09/10/2018 17:22

I refuse to engage with the word 'gender' these days.

If I can cross it out I do - otherwise I tick the other/don't know box as it's just all so very confusing these days isn't it?

reallybadidea · 09/10/2018 17:22

I'd bet money on it not being for woke reasons and it just being used as a synonym for sex. It's fairly common in healthcare IME as a HCP and certainly not a new thing at all. If it said 'gender identity' then I'd agree, but I don't think that this is something to get upset about tbh.

drspouse · 09/10/2018 17:19

I changed it on ours. DH rolled his eyes.

Goldenbuzzer · 09/10/2018 17:18

Not to use gender..

Goldenbuzzer · 09/10/2018 17:17

Just changed it to sex on my forms and put a complaint in as to why they are collecting data on gender.
And to ask them use gender when they mean biological sex...

Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 04/10/2018 13:13

Good point about the GDPR perspective. I think the sex of the child might be relevant medically, especially looking at adverse drug reactions, but other than that you are right!

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MsBeaujangles · 04/10/2018 12:51

From a GDPR perspective, why are they collecting data on gender? You can ask them this! Is data on sex relevant? The f not, they shouldn't be asking for this either?

Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 04/10/2018 12:36

PHE switchboard said that as it isn't a PHE form, she couldn't put me through to publications, but gave me an email address for general enquiries. Any suggestions on what to include in my email, other than the glaringly obvious statement that gender and sex are not the same thing?

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WrongSideOfHistory · 04/10/2018 12:30

I've also crossed it out

Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 04/10/2018 12:27

PALS lady agrees with me but says I need to speak to Public Health England.

OP posts:
Original poster
TransposersArePosers · 04/10/2018 12:09

Third phonecall - 'it probably says boy or girl because it's only children having the vaccine'

Me 'That's not really the point though, is it? Gender and sex are not the same thing. For argument's sake, what should a parent whose child is female, but who 'identifies' as a boy tick? Surely it is sex and not gender that is needed etc etc'

I've now been told to ring PALS and been given another number to try.

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wejammin · 04/10/2018 10:22

I crossed out gender and put sex on both DCs forms too.

ChilliJamandAvocado · 04/10/2018 10:16

I reject having my "gender" recorded anywhere as female. Firstly, feminine is the relevant descriptor of gender, not female. Secondly, I repudiate all notions of gender applied to me... I have a sex and I have my own personality. Gender is the hierarchical apparatus used to oppress those of the female sex... why would I identify with the very structure used to uphold male supremacy and female subordination?

I'm getting round to signing up for a new GP, and noticed the initial online application form uses sex as a category... I let out a little cheer that there's some sanity left in the world Grin

rebelworld · 04/10/2018 09:51

I cross it out all the time.