The Cass Review- Interim Report

[rogdmum]

The Cass Review Interim Report has been released. 112 pages long and it’s such a bloody relief to read common sense.

cass.independent-review.uk/publications/interim-report/

There’s so much in it, but emphasis on taking a holistic approach with a great chart on page 57 showing the complex presentations in and complex pathways.

And social transitioning has been recognised as an active intervention!

“Social transition – this may not
be thought of as an intervention or treatment, because it is not something
that happens within health services. However, it is important to view it as an active intervention because it may have significant effects on the child or young person in terms of their psychological functioning. There are different views on the benefits versus the harms of early social transition. Whatever position one takes, it is important to acknowledge that it is not a neutral act, and better information is needed about outcomes.” Pages 62/63

So much in it. So much. And there’s more to come as the review continues to work on the issues.

Scottish government should read this as well

This report is dynamite... How will Mermaids et al respond I wonder? Has HC been called a TERF yet?

3.31. The most difficult question is whether puberty blockers do indeed provide valuable time for children and young people to consider their options, or whether they effectively ‘lock in’ children and young people to a treatment pathway which culminates in progression to feminising/ masculinising hormones by impeding the usual process of sexual orientation and gender identity development. Data from both the Netherlands38 and the study conducted by GIDS39 demonstrated that almost all children and young people who are put on puberty blockers go on to sex hormone treatment (96.5% and 98% respectively). The reasons for this need to be better understood.

Wow thanks for the heads up! Hoping dc naps long enough for me to read some of this!

So far the TRA response that I’ve seen has been pretty neutral. I wonder if they are waking up to the fact that burning bridges while name calling is not the best approach especially as this is only the INTERIM report.

@littlbrowndog

Scottish government should read this as well

At this point I'm not sure that will help.

I am feeling so great about this report. It is covering all the issues of concern.

Mermaids are deep in denial on Twitter, cherry-picking things out of context and trying in vain to put a positive spin on this report which must be an existential threat to them.

I hope this report finishes them.

This report is dynamite... How will Mermaids et al respond I wonder?

Mermaids:

The interim report from @TheCassReview has been published today. It clearly recognises that the current NHSE model is not sustainable considering the delay in access to treatment. (1/4)

Dr Cass makes it clear that trans, non-binary and gender diverse young people deserve the same standard of care as anyone else. (2/4)

Dr Cass also directly writes to young people reassuring them that services will not be reduced or stopped. (3/4)

We are currently reviewing the report in detail and will publish a considered response in due course. (4/4)

As Emma Hilton notes of tweet 2:

I am not clear they quite grasp the meaning of this particular recommendation.

I predict that Dr Cass will be labeled a biased bigot who has been 'got at' any moment now.

I am about to flick through this. But just from what I have seen it is reiterating 'there is not enough evidence to continue this practice' and that all the cheerleading around the world for these treatments should not influence sound medical protocols.

It will be like Baroness Faulkner though when she came out and said women were not transphobic for stating there are conflicts with trans and women's rights and that discussions need to be had. Now look at her fighting to maintain the right to keep dialogue open with all parties involved, for her job and the reputation of the EHRC.

Thanks for posting this rogdmum. This confirms what we've been arguing in regard to the serious failures in safeguarding these children.

While I'm glad to see our concerns not merely acknowledged, not merely echoed, but confirmed by evidence, it makes me so bloody angry to think how many children and parents have been failed because ideology was allowed to override the safeguarding standards all other children are entitled to when receiving medical care.

@EmbarrassingHadrosaurus

Downloaded and I've web.archive.org 'd the URL in the OP (can't post or it will be hidden ).

Thank you. That's good to know.

As Emma Hilton notes of tweet 2:

I am not clear they quite grasp the meaning of this particular recommendation.

They are clear they will just attempt to spin it their way every time.

No evidence though. None. As we always suspected.

I knew about the huge over representation of neurodiverse children.

I didn’t know about the large over representation of looked after children.

I’m now in a simmering fury over how these children, who already have enough to cope with in life, have been steamrollered over by the ideologues and cheerleaders

And nobody thought to stop and say “hey, we really are getting a lot of kids with very complex needs through the doors, aren’t we?”

No, that’s not fair. Plenty of people there did, or tried to. Then they left because they felt so compromised and unable to give the children appropriate care.

Setting aside my anger over that, the report is a great read. Clear, compassionate, thoughtful.

Christine Burns has a reliably terrible take on it, which boils down to “the t*rfs are pleased with this, what am I missing?” 🤪 makes it very clear that some people really do believe that concerned women and worried parents are motivated by something other than wanting good medical care for distressed children and adolescents…

I think the report also speaks to the standard of this forum. Many of the points have been made repeatedly here over and over again for years, with our own research and analysis of research and experience, both personal and professional. No one has listened to us, but they can’t ignore Hilary Cass.

No, that’s not fair. Plenty of people there did, or tried to. Then they left because they felt so compromised and unable to give the children appropriate care.

I met a few social workers and youth workers doing just that. They were either bullied out of their jobs or left because they couldn't properly look after these kids and couldn't morally justify continuing under those conditions.

@CharlieParley

Thanks for posting this rogdmum. This confirms what we've been arguing in regard to the serious failures in safeguarding these children.

While I'm glad to see our concerns not merely acknowledged, not merely echoed, but confirmed by evidence, it makes me so bloody angry to think how many children and parents have been failed because ideology was allowed to override the safeguarding standards all other children are entitled to when receiving medical care.

I'm bloody angry too CharlieParley .

This is a shameful indictment of the NHS, the government and all institutions who have been captured by these toxic groups that it even has to be stated that these vulnerable children must receive the same standards of clinical care, assessment and treatment as every other child
It beggars belief that clinicians need an enquiry to point out that there's no research or data and that a "fundamentally different service model is needed which is more in line with other paediatric provision..... This must include support for any other clinical presentations that they may have"

These poor children and their families who have to date been so subject to such inadequate care and treatment.

Sophoclesthefox
Looked after children were specifically targeted as a group by trans lobby groups with some appalling "guidance" issued for children alienated from their families.

To be fair I am only at p. 19, but it really is like reading the MN points listed one by one.

• lack of description
• leads to lack of diagnostic tools
• leads to increase in referrals
• leads to drop in care standards
• leads to drop in follow up
• leads to a false perception that on success of treatment

and the list could go on.

Thanks again rogdmum for this link and for your patient posting in the past.

I didn’t know about the large over representation of looked after children.

I hadn't heard that about the UK, but I'd heard such reports from Canada. Jenn Smith (transwoman) has been focusing on this in his campaigning, as an ex-foster child himself. He quoted some ludicrously high percentage of patients at one gender psychologist being from foster care - 50%. Not checked the details of that claim though.

The study referenced in the Cass review says

Looked-after young people were found to represent 4.9% of referrals in this cohort, which is significantly higher than within the English general population (0.58%). Adopted young people represented 3.8% of referrals.

But that was referring to "185 young people referred to a UK gender identity development service over a 2-year period (1 April 2009 to 1 April 2011)", so long before the current trend.

@Goatsaregreat

Sophoclesthefox Looked after children were specifically targeted as a group by trans lobby groups with some appalling "guidance" issued for children alienated from their families.

Wtf? Really?

I thought I couldn’t be shocked any more…

I’d heard similar stories, charlie. Being bullied out seemed to be quite a common experience. I can imagine it’s going to be a hard read for staff left there, but a necessary one.

It’s a case study into institutional capture and a flourishing toxic environment going largely unchecked. I really hope things can be turned around.

@CharlieParley

No, that’s not fair. Plenty of people there did, or tried to. Then they left because they felt so compromised and unable to give the children appropriate care.

I met a few social workers and youth workers doing just that. They were either bullied out of their jobs or left because they couldn't properly look after these kids and couldn't morally justify continuing under those conditions.

Yep. And clinical psychologists too scared to speak up too. Thousands who were concerned but unable to speak out. It's a shocking indictment

I haven't got a copy of the photo of Mermaids at a fair with candy and dogs to lure the kids in but it is on my back up hard drive. For future reference.

With regard to social transitioning not being a neutral act, it also says on page 63:

5.20. It should also be recognised that ‘doing nothing’ cannot be considered a neutral act.

I don’t really understand that statement. I understand that “doing nothing” requires making a decision to do so, but surely the act of doing nothing is, in itself neutral? The only reason I can imagine for it not being seen as a neutral act, is that campaigners have made it so. If anyone can explain, I’m interested to understand better.

@AlisonDonut

I haven't got a copy of the photo of Mermaids at a fair with candy and dogs to lure the kids in but it is on my back up hard drive. For future reference.

Mermaids tweets.

It's really good but my only real concern is that she does buy the genderist line that 'gender' is 'socially constructed' and also somehow 'innate' and that there can be 'incongruence' between expressed and assigned gender' that requires treatment (pp. 27-27). Somehow the emphasis on 'sex' has slipped here.