HEALTH: Study shows transgender not mental illness
TRANSGENDER is a condition and not a mental illness says a study conducted in Mexico and published in The Lancet.
Mexico is the first country to conduct a field study that provides scientific evidence that transgender is not a mental illness, say scientists led by the National Institute of Psychiatry (INP) of the Ministry of Health.
Currently, the conceptualization of transgender is included in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) Mental of the World Health Organization (WHO), and with the results of the investigation, it is intended to be removed from that category.
Te study conducted in collaboration with the Specialized Clinic Condesa in Mexico City and the National Autonomous University of Mexico, shows that the distress (stress caused by social rejection and violence) and dysfunction suffered by these people, on many occasions leads to a mental disorder, are a result of stigmatization and abuse they face in different social spheres.
The director of INP, Dr. Maria Elena Medina Mora, said that the study places Mexico as a spearhead in this topic worldwide.
She said that currently the research is being replicated in other countries like France, Brazil, India, Libya and South Africa, to obtain more scientific evidence to be presented in 2018 to the member countries of WHO.
T he protocol results were published in The Lancet Psychiatry, one of the world’s most recognized scientific journals.
Dr. Medina Mora stressed the importance of achieving the reclassification of transgender status, will ensure human rights and the protection of their health.
The Coordinator of the Condesa Specialized Mental Health Clinic, Dr. Hamid Vega-Ramirez said that the study was conducted in 250 patients in the medical unit, the only public institution that provides health services to trans people in Mexico City.
Among the findings it highlighted that respondents reported that the first time they realized their transgender identity was during childhood or adolescence (ages 2-17 years).
