The Fundamentals of Child and Adolescent Nursing in Improving Mental and Psychosocial Health among Gender Variant Children in Thailand
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Published:
Mar 31, 2018
Keywords:
child adolescent gender variance health status transgender
Main Article Content
Abstract
Gender variant children including transgender, non-binary and gender non-conforming
children represent a significant minority of children requiring proper care from child and adolescent
nurses in Thailand. Most of them experience stigmatization and discrimination regarding the lack
of social understanding. However, the fundamental knowledge and basic care systems mismatch
the corresponding needs of the gender variant children contexts. Also, scant information is
available regarding the physical, emotional and psychosocial needs of these children and their
care-providers. These limitations induce the high-risk behavior impacting health outcomes or
progressing worse health conditions. The purpose of this article is to provide a definition of gender
variance in children, to highlight the known physical and mental health care needs of this
population, and to provide recommendations for improving the services and care of these children
by pediatric nurses in Thailand.
Article Details
How to Cite
Kittiteerasack, P., Sangngam, J., & Matthews, A. K. (2018). The Fundamentals of Child and Adolescent Nursing in Improving Mental and Psychosocial Health among Gender Variant Children in Thailand. Nursing Science Journal of Thailand, 36(1), 4–16. Retrieved from https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/ns/article/view/146605
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Scholarly Article
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References
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2. Kittitteerasack P, Matthews AK. Minority stress model (MSTM): The framework of sexual minority health risk. The Journal of Psychiatric Nursing and Mental Health. 2017;31(2): 1-15 (in Thai).
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7. Goldbach JT, Tanner-Smith EE, Bagwell M, Dunlap S. Minority stress and substance use in sexual minority adolescents: a meta-analysis. Prev Sci. 2014;15(3):350-63.
8. Gates GJ. How many people are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender? [Internet]. Los Angeles, CA: The Williams Institute, UCLA School of Low; 2011 [cited 2017 Aug 5]. Available from: http://escholarship.org/uc/item/09h684x2.
9. Achenbach TM, Edelbrock CS. Manual for the child behavior checklist and revised child behavior profile. Burlington: Department of Psychiatry, University of Vermont; 1983.
10. Zucker KJ, Bradley SJ, Sanikhani M. Sex differences in referral rates of children with gender identity disorder: some hypotheses. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 1997;25(3):217-27.
11. Shields JP, Cohen R, Glassman JR, Whitaker K, Franks H, Bertolini I. Estimating population size and demographic characteristics of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth in middle school. J Adolesc Health. 2013;52(2):248-50.
12. Weitze C, Osburg S. Transsexualism in Germany: empirical data on epidemiology and application of the German Transsexuals' Act during its first ten years. Arch Sex Behav. 1996;25(4):409-25.
13. Marshall E. NIH's "gay gene" study questioned. Science. 1995;268(5219):1841.
14. Hines M. Prenatal endocrine influences on sexual orientation and on sexually differentiated childhood behavior. Front Neuroendocrinol. 2011;32(2):170-82.
15. Shainess N. The formation of gender identity. J Sex Res. 1969;5(2):75-85.
16. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-5). American Psychiatric Association Publishing; 2013.
17. American Psychological Association. What is gender dysphoria [Internet]. Massachusetts: American Psychological Association Publishing; 2017 [cited 2017 Aug 15]. Available from: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/gender-dysphoria/what-is-gender-dysphoria
18. Riley EA, Sitharthan G, Clemson L, Diamond M. The needs of gender-variant children and their parents according to health professionals. Int J Transgen. 2011;13(2):54-63.
19. Riley EA, Sitharthan G, Clemson L, Diamond M. The needs of gender-variant children and their parents: A parent survey. Int J Transgen. 2011;23(2):181-95.
20. Riley EA, Clemson L, Sitharthan G, Diamond M. Surviving a gender-variant childhood: the views of transgender adults on the needs of gender-variant children and their parents. J Sex Marital Ther. 2013;39(3):241-63.
21. Hummer RA, Hernandez EM. The effect of educational attainment on adult mortality in the United States. Popul Bull. 2013;68(1):1-16.
22. Kosciw JG, Greytak EA, Bartkiewicz MJ, Boesen MJ, Palmer NA. The 2011 national school climate survey: the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth in our nation's shools. New York, NY: Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN); 2012.
23. Chokrungvaranont P, Tiewtranon P. Sex reassignment surgery in Thailand. J Med Assoc Thai. 2004;87(11):1402-8.
24. Hembree WC, Cohen-Kettenis P, Delemarre-Van De Waal HA, Gooren LJ, Meyer WJ 3rd, et al. Endocrine treatment of transsexual persons: an Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2009;94(9):3132-54.
25. Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Public Health. Gender identity disorder [Internet]. Nonthaburi: Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Public Health; 2017 [cited 2017 Sep 9]. Available from: http://www.dmh.go.th/news/view.asp?id=1110. (in Thai).
26. Ryan C, Huebner D, Diaz RM, Sanchez J. Family rejection as a predictor of negative health outcomes in white and Latino lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults. Pediatrics. 2009;123(1):346-52.
27. Coleman E, Bockting W, Botzer M, Cohen-Kettenis P, DeCuypere G, Feldman J, Monstrey S.
et al. Standards of care for the health of transsexual, transdender, and gender-nonconforming people, version 7. Int J Transgend. 2012;13(4):165-232.
28. Deutsch MB. Guidelines for the primary and gender-affirming care of transgender and gender nonbinary people. 2nd ed. San Francisco, CA: University of California; 2016.
29. Edwards-Leeper L, Spack NP. Psychological evaluation and medical treatment of transgender youth in an interdisplinary “Gender Management Service” (GeMS) in a major pediatric center. J Homosex. 2012;59(3):321-36.
30. Drescher J, Pula. Ethical issues raised by the treatment of gender-variant prepubescent children. Hastings Center Rep. 2014;44(4):S17-22.
31. Brill S, Pepper R. The transgender child: a handbook for families and professionals. San Francisco, CA: Cleis Press; 2008.
32. European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). EU LGBT survey - European Union lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survey – main results. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union; 2014.
33. Hill DB, Menvielle E, Sica KM, Johnson A. An affirmative intervention for families with gender variant children: Parental ratings of child mental health and gender. J Sex Marital Ther. 2010;36(1):6-23.
34. Chokrungvaranont P, Tiewtranon P. Sex reassignment surgery in Thailand. J Med Assoc Thai. 2004;87(11):1402-8.
35. Bowman C, Goldberg JM. Care of the patient undergoing sex reassignment surgery. Int J Transgend. 2006;9(3-4):135-65.
36. Murchison G. Supporting and Caring for Transgender children [Internet]. Northwest, Washington, D.C.: Human Rights Campaign Foundation; 2016 [cited 2017 Aug 5]. Available from: www.cappcny.org/home/media/trans-kids-supporting-and-caring-aap-16.pdf.
37. Coleman E, Bockting W, Botzer M, Cohen-Kettenis P, DeCuypere G, Feldman J. et al. Standards of care for the health of transsexual, transgender, and gender-nonconforming people, version 7. Int J Transgend. 2012;13(4):165-232.
38. Simons L, Schrager SM, Clark LF, Belzer M, Olson J. Parental support and mental health among transgender adolescents. J Adolesc Health. 2013;53(6):791-3.
2. Kittitteerasack P, Matthews AK. Minority stress model (MSTM): The framework of sexual minority health risk. The Journal of Psychiatric Nursing and Mental Health. 2017;31(2): 1-15 (in Thai).
3. American Psychological Association. Definition of terms: sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association; 2011.
4. World Health Organization. Gender, equity, human rights [Internet]. Geneva, Switzerland; 2017 [cited 2017 Aug 5]. Available from: http://www.who.int/gender-equity-rights/understanding/gender-definition/en/.
5. American Psychological Association. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender [Internet]. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association; 2016 [cited 2017 Jan 10]. Available from: http://www.apa.org/topics/lgbt/index.aspx.
6. World Health Organization. Suicide [Internet]. Geneva, Switzerland; 2016 [cited 2017 Feb 19]. Available from: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs398/en.
7. Goldbach JT, Tanner-Smith EE, Bagwell M, Dunlap S. Minority stress and substance use in sexual minority adolescents: a meta-analysis. Prev Sci. 2014;15(3):350-63.
8. Gates GJ. How many people are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender? [Internet]. Los Angeles, CA: The Williams Institute, UCLA School of Low; 2011 [cited 2017 Aug 5]. Available from: http://escholarship.org/uc/item/09h684x2.
9. Achenbach TM, Edelbrock CS. Manual for the child behavior checklist and revised child behavior profile. Burlington: Department of Psychiatry, University of Vermont; 1983.
10. Zucker KJ, Bradley SJ, Sanikhani M. Sex differences in referral rates of children with gender identity disorder: some hypotheses. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 1997;25(3):217-27.
11. Shields JP, Cohen R, Glassman JR, Whitaker K, Franks H, Bertolini I. Estimating population size and demographic characteristics of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth in middle school. J Adolesc Health. 2013;52(2):248-50.
12. Weitze C, Osburg S. Transsexualism in Germany: empirical data on epidemiology and application of the German Transsexuals' Act during its first ten years. Arch Sex Behav. 1996;25(4):409-25.
13. Marshall E. NIH's "gay gene" study questioned. Science. 1995;268(5219):1841.
14. Hines M. Prenatal endocrine influences on sexual orientation and on sexually differentiated childhood behavior. Front Neuroendocrinol. 2011;32(2):170-82.
15. Shainess N. The formation of gender identity. J Sex Res. 1969;5(2):75-85.
16. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-5). American Psychiatric Association Publishing; 2013.
17. American Psychological Association. What is gender dysphoria [Internet]. Massachusetts: American Psychological Association Publishing; 2017 [cited 2017 Aug 15]. Available from: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/gender-dysphoria/what-is-gender-dysphoria
18. Riley EA, Sitharthan G, Clemson L, Diamond M. The needs of gender-variant children and their parents according to health professionals. Int J Transgen. 2011;13(2):54-63.
19. Riley EA, Sitharthan G, Clemson L, Diamond M. The needs of gender-variant children and their parents: A parent survey. Int J Transgen. 2011;23(2):181-95.
20. Riley EA, Clemson L, Sitharthan G, Diamond M. Surviving a gender-variant childhood: the views of transgender adults on the needs of gender-variant children and their parents. J Sex Marital Ther. 2013;39(3):241-63.
21. Hummer RA, Hernandez EM. The effect of educational attainment on adult mortality in the United States. Popul Bull. 2013;68(1):1-16.
22. Kosciw JG, Greytak EA, Bartkiewicz MJ, Boesen MJ, Palmer NA. The 2011 national school climate survey: the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth in our nation's shools. New York, NY: Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN); 2012.
23. Chokrungvaranont P, Tiewtranon P. Sex reassignment surgery in Thailand. J Med Assoc Thai. 2004;87(11):1402-8.
24. Hembree WC, Cohen-Kettenis P, Delemarre-Van De Waal HA, Gooren LJ, Meyer WJ 3rd, et al. Endocrine treatment of transsexual persons: an Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2009;94(9):3132-54.
25. Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Public Health. Gender identity disorder [Internet]. Nonthaburi: Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Public Health; 2017 [cited 2017 Sep 9]. Available from: http://www.dmh.go.th/news/view.asp?id=1110. (in Thai).
26. Ryan C, Huebner D, Diaz RM, Sanchez J. Family rejection as a predictor of negative health outcomes in white and Latino lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults. Pediatrics. 2009;123(1):346-52.
27. Coleman E, Bockting W, Botzer M, Cohen-Kettenis P, DeCuypere G, Feldman J, Monstrey S.
et al. Standards of care for the health of transsexual, transdender, and gender-nonconforming people, version 7. Int J Transgend. 2012;13(4):165-232.
28. Deutsch MB. Guidelines for the primary and gender-affirming care of transgender and gender nonbinary people. 2nd ed. San Francisco, CA: University of California; 2016.
29. Edwards-Leeper L, Spack NP. Psychological evaluation and medical treatment of transgender youth in an interdisplinary “Gender Management Service” (GeMS) in a major pediatric center. J Homosex. 2012;59(3):321-36.
30. Drescher J, Pula. Ethical issues raised by the treatment of gender-variant prepubescent children. Hastings Center Rep. 2014;44(4):S17-22.
31. Brill S, Pepper R. The transgender child: a handbook for families and professionals. San Francisco, CA: Cleis Press; 2008.
32. European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). EU LGBT survey - European Union lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survey – main results. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union; 2014.
33. Hill DB, Menvielle E, Sica KM, Johnson A. An affirmative intervention for families with gender variant children: Parental ratings of child mental health and gender. J Sex Marital Ther. 2010;36(1):6-23.
34. Chokrungvaranont P, Tiewtranon P. Sex reassignment surgery in Thailand. J Med Assoc Thai. 2004;87(11):1402-8.
35. Bowman C, Goldberg JM. Care of the patient undergoing sex reassignment surgery. Int J Transgend. 2006;9(3-4):135-65.
36. Murchison G. Supporting and Caring for Transgender children [Internet]. Northwest, Washington, D.C.: Human Rights Campaign Foundation; 2016 [cited 2017 Aug 5]. Available from: www.cappcny.org/home/media/trans-kids-supporting-and-caring-aap-16.pdf.
37. Coleman E, Bockting W, Botzer M, Cohen-Kettenis P, DeCuypere G, Feldman J. et al. Standards of care for the health of transsexual, transgender, and gender-nonconforming people, version 7. Int J Transgend. 2012;13(4):165-232.
38. Simons L, Schrager SM, Clark LF, Belzer M, Olson J. Parental support and mental health among transgender adolescents. J Adolesc Health. 2013;53(6):791-3.