Transform Health Services
Counseling and Support
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What is Transform Health?
Transform Health is a partnership of UK HealthCare providers who have the shared goal of meeting many of the unique medical needs of people who identify in the broad LGBTQ+ spectrum in a way they can feel safe and affirmed and receive evidence-based care.
Our Philosophy
- Shared decision making
- We consult evidence-based guidelines, including the Centers for Disease Control and the WPATH transgender standards, and also practice shared decision making that respects your rights and includes your values and life circumstances.
- Informed consent
- For hormone therapy, we use an informed-consent model. We connect you to gender-affirming therapists as needed or desired, but in most cases would not require a support letter from a therapist.
- Training the next generation of health care providers
- You will have supervised students and residents participate in your care, except on a case-by-case basis. We appreciate your willingness to help future providers and will always be clear about our roles.
- You as a patient will have voluntary opportunities to be on speakers’ panels for other providers learning about LGBTQ+ care.
- Team-based care
- We appreciate and work closely with the medical assistants, nurses, mental health professionals, social workers and surgeons who are all a part of our team.
- Our gender-affirming surgery partners will require letters from a mental health provider based on the current recommendations from WPATH Standards of Care 8 and/or insurance company policies.
- Community connections
- We strive to make and keep strong ties to LGBTQ+-affirming community organizations and resources.
- Knowledge is power
- We are dedicated to helping research many aspects of LGBTQ+ care.
- You as a patient will have opportunities to participate in voluntary research projects.
- Researchers in the field may contact us to partner on projects.
Our vision & mission
Our vision
The Transform Health initiative seeks to improve the health of the LGBTQ+ community in Kentucky and serve as the state’s leading resource for education and research on LGBTQ+ health.
Our mission
Transform Health is an interprofessional healthcare home for LGBTQ+ patients of all ages to receive evidence-based, high-quality care in a safe place. Transform Health provides clinical care and is the central resource to train students, faculty and staff in LGBTQ+ care, to contribute to the body of knowledge through ethical research, and to provide outreach and resources throughout the state.
Our services:
- Primary care (including chronic care for health conditions, basic mental health care, cancer screenings, screening for sexually transmitted infections)
- PrEP (for HIV prevention)
- Hormone therapy for adults
- Hormone therapy for adolescents (with parent/guardian involvement and consent)
- Gender-affirming general care for children and families
- Mental health care referrals (both in and out of UK)
- Gynecologic care for all people with gyn anatomy
- Surgery referrals
- Gynecology – for pelvic and menstrual concerns and hysterectomy
- Plastic surgery – for breast augmentation and chest mastectomy
- ENT – for facial feminization
- Urology – in or out of UK for pelvic or urinary concerns, orchiectomy; outside of UK for vulvoplasty/vaginoplasty, metoidoplasty; outside of Kentucky for phalloplasty
Transform Health is a partnership of UK HealthCare providers who have the shared goal of meeting many of the unique medical needs of people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, questioning and/or anywhere on this spectrum as well as those who consider themselves on the transgender spectrum. Services are offered to all community members at our central clinic, the UK Family Medicine Transform Health Clinic at UK HealthCare-Turfland, and to University of Kentucky students at the University Health Service on campus.