Trans persons sometimes experience fear of a medical examination, which can lead to the avoidance of a visit to a healthcare provider.
A healthcare environment in which the person is informed, asked, respected and reassured when a physical examination is needed is essential. Explain with great care which kind of physical examinations you need to do and why.
Use gender-neutral terms for certain body parts or ask which term the trans person wishes to use for the body part, and make note of appropriate terminology in the person’s chart so that the conversation does not have to be repeated for each visit.
Do not assume specifics of a person’s anatomy or relationship with their body: every trans person feels different about their body, has unique needs, and might have undergone diverse medical interventions.
Trans persons might have a complicated relationship with their bodies, making sexuality and sexual health often a difficult subject to speak about. As a result trans people often do not easily speak about their sexuality or sexual health with care providers. Others might experience it in a positive way or have mixed feelings.
Hormone therapy and gender affirming operations can have different effects on the psycho-social and sexual experiences of trans persons.
Although hormone therapy can lead to infertility in the long term, trans persons who have not undergone sterilisation surgeries can still become pregnant (trans people assigned female at birth, including trans men) or get someone pregnant (trans people assigned male at birth, including trans women).
Not all trans persons have the same physical characteristics: avoid assumptions regarding anatomy when providing information about sexual and reproductive health. Trans people can have all kinds of sexual orientations and sexual practices.
Try to disconnect sexual behaviour and contraceptives from a certain gender when giving information about safe sex.