NHS / NHSE - NEW - Interim service specification: Interim specialist service for children and young people with gender incongruence

[ChristinaXYZ]

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Interim-service-specification-for-Specialist-Gender-Incongruence-Services-for-Children-and-Young-People.pdf

Good summary by Hannah Barnes on twitter

https://twitter.com/hannahsbee/status/1667160027151364098

Boom.

The triumph of incongruence over dysphoria - Eliza Mondegreen

It makes it less likely that NHS GPs will co-operate with the Wobblies as the tide is turning on prescribing hormones to children. I see more Wobbly related GMC and civil cases if they continue to prescribe puberty blockers. They will have to do better assessments to cover themselves

Thank you, I'll have a read of that now.

BBC article on this here https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65860272 It’s made the front page though won’t get much notice below everything else this evening.

To be fair to NHSE it’s not their role to issue guidance or regulate private services.

I’m cautiously optimistic about the new guidance. My concern will be who is commissioned to run the new clinics and how much of them will have come from Tavi and other previously captured groups. But overall there does seem a change in focus.

We need the government now to look at the regulation of private clinics now.

As others have said, GGP is generally recognised by GPs as bargepole territory and their divergence from what will now be standard NHS practice will reinforce that and hopefully limit other private providers who are less notorious following in their footsteps.

It was on the 6 o’clock news on radio 4.

As in draft doc, NHSE ‘strongly discourages’ families from sourcing puberty blockers or hormones from unregulated sources or on-line providers that aren't regulated by UK regulatory bodies. But, there's no longer a call for mandatory safeguarding reporting in these circumstances.

That last sentence is worrying.

"As in draft doc, NHSE ‘strongly discourages’ families from sourcing puberty blockers or hormones from unregulated sources or on-line providers that aren't regulated by UK regulatory bodies. But, there's no longer a call for mandatory safeguarding reporting in these circumstances.
That last sentence is worrying"

My guess is that it's a political move to avoid an ideological pile on? Currently all aspects of Social Care have been captured by trans extremism. It won't be until the harms to children are clearly evidenced & documented that they'll take a referral seriously. Currently they're just dismissed as transphobia. Incredibly frustrating but this is the approach Cass has taken. Not getting into debates with political activists, simply insisting on data / research driven medical care for vulnerable children.

Children will still be prescribed puberty blockers, they'll just be included in the clinical trial.

How does a change in safeguarding standards usually work? I assumed there would be something like an equality impact assessment to justify the change and show evidence of why its safe.

So they can’t be sued if they don’t prescribe, but take onboard any child taking PBs or XHormones for “clinical research”? So - passing the buck?

Who is in charge of regulating the private GPs and other prescribers? Who can stop this occurring outside NHS remit?