Canadian Professional Association for Transgender Health

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WPATH SOC v7

WPATH, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, recently released Version 7 of its Standards of Care (SOC) at its Symposium in Atlanta, the first time that the SOC have been revised since 2001. The WPATH SOC are used by health care professionals internationally to guide their work with transgender people. Version 7 of the… read more »

Bill C-389

The two main objectives of the Bill C-389 are to provide: 1) explicit federal human rights protection on the grounds of gender identity and gender expression; and 2) the availability of greater moral and penal sanction for crimes committed against an individual because of the individual’s gender identity or gender expression. Contrary to the allegations… read more »

De-psycho pathologisation…

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health has prepared and released a statement urging the de-psychopathologisation of gender variance worldwide (May 26, 2010). The statement is as follows: “The WPATH Board of Directors strongly urges the de-psychopathologisation of gender variance worldwide. The expression of gender characteristics, including identities, that are not stereotypically associated with one’s… read more »

National standards of care…

CPATH currently endorses the use of WPATH International Standards of Care. We are aware of significant limitations to their application in Canada which vary from province to province. We do recognize that some clinical practices at CAMH are not in line with current WPATH standards, as is true at other centers across the country. As… read more »

FFS in Canada? You bet!

We are fortunate to have two specialized surgeons who provide facial feminization procedures for transgender persons in Canada. In Vancouver, Dr. Cameron Bowman works out of a private clinic and day hospital offering a variety of soft tissue procedures including blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) and facial contouring with injectables (silicone, botx, etc.).  He works with Dr.… read more »

DSM-V Part 2: final draft for comment…

On February 10 (12:00 am), the American Psychiatric Association (APA) released the proposed draft diagnostic criteria for DSM–5 on its Website www.dsm5.org.  The draft criteria represent content changes under consideration. The information posted on the Website includes the proposed criteria, the rationale, the supporting research, and DSM-IV content as a comparison. The proposed diagnostic criteria… read more »

DSM-V Part 1: background…

The reports from the DSM-V Work Group on Sexual and gender Identity Disorders  are in! The larger work group was chaired by our Canadian colleague KenZucker from Toronto, and members of the Gender Identity Disorders sub-workgroup included world renowned clinicians and researchers.  Several of us were fortunate to have a seat on a WPATH working committee, one of many organizations… read more »

Advocacy vs. activism…

Advocacy represents the strategies devised, actions taken and solutions proposed to influence decision-making on a particular cause/issue. The purpose being to create positive change for people and their environments.  Individuals, organizations, businesses and governments can all engage in advocacy activities. Topics or activities should provide a non-partisan viewpoint, adhere to professional standards of your occupation,… read more »

What does “cisgender” mean?…

As the prefix hetero- followed homo- in the 1950’s, so has trans- with cis- at the turn of this century. Cisgender or cissexual was first coined on the internet in the mid-1990’s, and later picked up academically (in particular queer studies) to refer to individuals who are not transsexual and who have only ever experienced… read more »

Catherine White Holman remembered…

By Randy Shore @ Vancouver Sun Dec 1, 2009 Social worker Catherine White Holman was a pioneer in Vancouver’s Downtown neighbourhoods, bringing health services to the most marginalized people in the city, according to long-time colleague Trevor Corneil. “Catherine was a remarkable person,” said Corneil, a physician at Three Bridges Community Health Centre where Holman… read more »