Be an Ally: How to Improve Care for Transgender Persons Living With HIV

CCO Infectious Disease Podcast

In this episode, Colleen F. Kelley, MD, MPH, and Jemma Samitpol discuss key considerations to improve the patient experience among transgender persons with HIV, including:

• Unique circumstances faced by transgender people trying to access HIV care (eg, stigma, discrimination)
• Best practices to improve access and linkage to HIV care
• Ways to integrate gender-affirming care into HIV care
• Creating a welcoming and inclusive environment
• Offering same-day HIV treatment
• Addressing potential drug–drug interactions with gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT), including ART and natural remedies
• Understanding and communicating expectations of GAHT (eg, treatment response, timing of effects)
• Providing information on the safety of gender-affirming surgeries
• Importance of providing person-centered care (eg, mental health, substance abuse, housing, harm reduction)
• Strategies on how to promote a gender-affirming environment (eg, wearing pronoun buttons, staff training)
• Consequences to the lack of gender recognition laws
• How to “be an ally” for transgender people with HIV

Presenters

Colleen F. Kelley, MD, MPH
Professor of Medicine
Division of Infectious Diseases
Department of Medicine
Co-Director, Emory Center for AIDS Research
Associated Dean for Research, Emory at Grady
Emory University School of Medicine
Atlanta, Georgia

Kritima Jemma Samitpol
Tangerine Clinic Supervisor
Institute of HIV Research and Innovation
Bangkok, Thailand

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