Updated transgender health standards offer practical guidelines for engagement 

Over the past decade, there has been significant progress in both our scientific and social understanding of transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people, along with advances in gender affirmation treatment. Now, in another step forward, the much-anticipated update to the Standards of Care for the Health of Transgender and Gender Diverse People (SOC-8) was recently released by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). This SOC-8 defines and promotes the highest standards of health care for TGD people based on the latest medical knowledge and expert consensus.

Standards of care that reflect current understanding

The TGD community includes those who identify as transgender, non-binary, gender-queer, or gender fluid. The first SOC was developed and published in 1979 and the last version (v7) was published in 2012. The SOC-8 version will help ensure broad awareness of the latest physical and mental health treatment options for TGD people, with the goal of making them more widely available. It also recognizes that, given the diversity of TGD and how widely individuals’ circumstances can vary, the transition process is different across TGD people. The main updates are geared towards reducing barriers to care in the full spectrum of gender identity, defining qualifications of healthcare providers, enhancing education and cultural competence, updating information on children and youth care, and encouraging reliance on a medical necessity approach.

A key objective of this SOC-8 update is to inform health care professionals and provide evidence-based clinical guidance for TGD people who experience gender incongruence. For others stakeholders, such as advocates, healthcare financing entities, employers, and others who may interact with and or provide some level of care for TGD people, these guidelines can inform and guide the various services or health care products used to promote high quality of care and a human-centered experience.

Using the SOC-8 to be better informed and align to the latest standards for care

The SOC-8 offers a human-centered understanding and approach to engaging and supporting individuals experiencing gender incongruence, based on the latest clinical knowledge. It outlines the risks and challenges that TGD people often face, and includes important content regarding terminology. Words do matter, so it’s important to use these up-to-date – and practical – guidelines when addressing and engaging with TGD individuals in your population. As such, all company leaders can benefit from the WPATH SOC-8.

Given that the primary audience for SOC-8 are clinicians, the content, explanations, and discussions contain clinically focused language that may not be accessible for all readers, so you may need to seek help with this review. To help employers stay current with the latest science, sociology, and treatment guidelines, we’ve developed a framework by which to evaluate health plan policies, processes, and even benefit provisions, to reflect the updates in the SOC-8 – which can make a big difference in the health and well-being of TGD employees and health plan members.