JKR tweets about Dr David Bell

I even saw one TRA trying to tell David Bell that he should “listen to real trans medicine” by posting a link to GenderGP’s website. 🤦‍♀️

I mean, where do you even start with that….?

The TRAs frothing on Twitter about that FOI letter clearly haven’t the foggiest about how an NHS trust works or about institutional governance. Or indeed anything about medicine.

It’s akin to complaining that a consultant in neurology who’s a governor of a general NHS trust isn’t qualified to notice or whistleblow on medical malpractice in the cardiac unit.

I try to avoid Twitter normally but my god, gender Twitter is an absolutely seething mass of idiocy and ignorance about a whole range of subjects. It’s no surprise they believe people can change sex when you see how much utter nonsense about all sorts of stuff is washing around on there.

[quote JeanGabin]This response from the Royal College of Psychiatrists is pretty poor [[https://twitter.com/rcpsych/status/1509918211449495570?s=21&t=kdeP87IJv8DBT-5Tq_TdFg]][/quote]
Yes, Adrian James, the current Royal College of Psychiatrists President is very much on the side of Stonewall.

I don't think there is much research in to what else puberty blockers block. Brain maturation, emotional development, etc.

Dr Q in the Webberley malpractice tribunal this week, said that the spinal column vertebrae stops growing with puberty blockers

and yes re being one step away and not having an adult perspective. people look back at Jimmy Savile and wonder how it happened. Now a different scandal is happening and the adults behave so strangely

It’s Frankenstein-esque. Abusive.

That tweet let me to a poster on Twitter who was posting stories from detransitioners.

One woman cries every day. One is locked into a body that doesn't work and they don't like. Different stories, different regrets.

What strikes me is they still do not seem to have an adult perspective on it.

It's difficult to explain. But the overwhelming horror of mutilating children's bodies and medicalising them because they were fed lies about stereotypes, still seems a step away. One woman was feeling envious of her peers getting ready for the school prom, for instance.

I don't think there is much research in to what else puberty blockers block. Brain maturation, emotional development, etc.

Even the most ardent supporter would have trouble justifying arresting every aspect of human development in a child.

It really is horrifying. And then you get TRAs pushing it and pushing it.

[quote BunnyBerries]Dr David Bell's Women's hour session is still up and available. Be forewarned, it's heartbreaking.

[[https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000s2jx]][/quote]
Thank you for the link. Dr Bell is a star. He has professional and moral integrity. He’s also worth listening to on the Nolan interviews (still available on BBC Sounds).

I think I have assumed GIDS to be children only but is it for adult referrals too?

Had to double-check myself. We tend to say "Tavistock" a lot, when we mean "GIDS".

The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust is the broader organisation, offering a range of psychiatric services.

The Gender Identity Clinic (GIC) and Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) are two services within that trust, for adults and children respectively.

I understand Bell was working for the Tavistock itself, rather than for any particular specialised service within it.

I'm sure he must have encountered gender cases during his career, but I get the impression that by the time this new surge of ROGD etc started, he wasn't so much involved with direct patient care, being more management level, so he probably has limited hands-on experience with the current cohort. But he's hearing all the reports from staff who have.

Transactivists will try and undermine David Bell in any way they can. Saying he didn't work directly with children is one such attempt. Completely ignoring the fact that many clinicians who did work with children came to him, profoundly concerned about what was happening.

I think I have assumed GIDS to be children only but is it for adult referrals too?

GIDS is for children only, but there is a separate gender identity clinic for adults at the Tavistock which is referred to as the GIC.

I should qualify I am not saying everyone with gender dysphoria has all the aforementioned issues, but it’s indicated that many sadly do.

I assumed that because I know a general adult psychiatrist supporting transitioning or transitioned adults - obviously one practice example but I thought gender services were focused on the dysphoria aspect mainly, and adult psychiatry is left to support the complex trauma, ptsd, neurodiverse diagnoses etc?

I think I have assumed GIDS to be children only but is it for adult referrals too?

will have had supported adult transitioners and detransitioners

Again, to be precise, I'm not sure he worked directly in gender-related treatment. Tavistock is a broader psychiatric treatment centre, of which GIDS is only a (rapidly growing!) part.

But it's clear that he's able to apply his general psychiatric experience to their overall approach.

Much of the problem with GIDS appears to have been obsession over "gender" while ignoring (or forgetting) everything else we know about people, and the sort of issues they may have.

GIDS are saying "these are trans kids", and he's saying "no, these are kids with a whole host of issues, often including autism or internalised homophobia, or homophobic parents, and they should all be looked at".

Ahhh thanks so much for the comprehensive reply, NecessaryScene, I knew I would find the answer here. Yes it is a shame JKR mentioned him treating children - a quick look at one of the articles you posted (I will read more later) shows he worked in adult services until his retirement. But it’s obviously an issue he is passionate about and will have had supported adult transitioners and detransitioners, as well as his support to practitioners working with children within GIDS. He is so inspiring to listen to.

They never do.

David Bell worked for the Tavistock trust, and authored a critical report into GIDS, after multiple GIDS staff contacted him.

“I was often the person people came to when they had problems,” he says. Having worked as a consultant at the Tavistock for more than 25 years, he was one of its most senior doctors: for 10 years, he was in charge of its scientific programme; in 2018, he was also an elected staff governor of the trust, for the second time. Of the 10 GIDS staff who would talk to him over the course of the next seven months, only the first saw Bell at the Tavistock; the others, who spoke of intimidation, worried about being seen. What did he make of what they told him? “My blood ran cold. Their concerns were similar, but not in a choreographed way. One or two were severely troubled.”

It appears JKR erred in saying that he was "treating" children - afaik he wasn't, but he was overseeing those who were. So that's presumably something they're going to obsess over.

More background in the articles and videos linked from these previous threads:

Observer interview with David Bell about the Tavistock case
Report on GIDS on Channel 4 news
Two new Times articles on Tavistock and disciplinary action against David Bell (whistleblower)
Genspect and David Bell in Telegraph
Fascinating psychological insight into child/parent dynamics by Dr David Bell

Anyone know what his current state of relations with the Tavistock is? He's retired, which is why he started speaking out publicly, but they still were attempting to bring some sort of displinary action just after the Keira Bell verdict.

I ❤️ JKR. Thank you to David Bell and all of the Tavi whistleblowers. At least the young people looking back on this will know that some professional people did have the individual patients’ best interests at heart, rather than offering ‘treatment’ by following their own politics.

This response from the Royal College of Psychiatrists is pretty poor https://twitter.com/rcpsych/status/1509918211449495570?s=21&t=kdeP87IJv8DBT-5Tq_TdFg

Agree, he didn't work with children but was a governor for the Tavistock trust and 10 people who were working for GIDS came to him with their concerns about the way GIDS was treating children with gender dysphoria and he got involved that way. He has never claimed to have worked with children. Listen to the womens hour session.

[quote Barrawarra]I came on to ask if folk know about the tweet on the thread from someone saying they did an FOI about David Bell’s practice experience, and were told that he never worked at GIDS? Is this just fake? I’d have to go back to the Stonewall podcast but it certainly came across that he had worked there.

twitter.com/doublehelix/status/1509981070728605696?s=21&t=5sGxdxXvggIVnMYFSR17pg[/quote]
I think he worked at the Tavistock trust, which runs GIDS

I came on to ask if folk know about the tweet on the thread from someone saying they did an FOI about David Bell’s practice experience, and were told that he never worked at GIDS? Is this just fake? I’d have to go back to the Stonewall podcast but it certainly came across that he had worked there.

twitter.com/doublehelix/status/1509981070728605696?s=21&t=5sGxdxXvggIVnMYFSR17pg

I literally used my Twitter account for the first time in a year to reply to JK on this matter and say that it's hateful she's shouted down for having an opinion. I went back to read some responses and apparently I'm "rate limited" and can't access Twitter now. Wtf??