In times past, medicine concerned — nearly entirely — medicine. The same could be said of science. But society has moved into a more sensitive space, so unprecedented considerations must be made.

Case in point: A new report tells doctors their expert notation must conform to what patients want written about them. Otherwise, there may be “harms.”

The Journal of General Internal Medicine online features a document called “Experiences of Transgender People Reviewing Their Electronic Health Records, a Qualitative Study.” The probe involves “thirty transgender adults aged 20 to 67 years, including ten clinicians.” And it asks a curious question: How will patients who say they’re something other than their sex feel if they read their doctors’ notes?

As it turns out, they might feel foul — unless caregivers conform to their inclinations.

Such is a serious subject, since the group at issue is oppressed. The wrong penned points will result in “trauma”:

Four themes were noted. (1) Using the wrong name, pronoun, or gender marker for patients is common in the EHR (electronic health record), erodes trust, and causes trauma. (2) Various aspects of clinicians’ notes contradict, blame, or stigmatize patients, across multiple axes of oppression. (3) Limitations of EHR capabilities create barriers to quality care. (4) Certain medical customs set the stage for marginalizing, objectifying, and pathologizing transgender people.

…

Transgender people may be particularly vulnerable to the harms of medical documentation given the pervasiveness of stigma, blaming, discrimination, and microaggressions in their clinical encounters.

For those lacking time to peruse the study, here’s its stated “conclusion“:

Transgender people experience harm via various aspects of EHR documentation, suggesting that changes must be made to improve patient-clinician relationships and reduce ill-effects for patients.

Hence, the authors — twelve in number, with impressive medical titles — have issued edicts for physicians in their note-taking:

• Use the [preferred] pronouns consistently throughout all documentation unless otherwise requested by patient.
• Refer to patients by the correct (i.e., the ones they have specified) name consistently throughout all documentation unless otherwise requested by patient.

Amid the treatment of a human body, doctors should include relevant information such as the person who owns that body’s stated sensibilities:

• Avoid the use of language that may inadvertently question the legitimacy of a patient’s [gender identity].
• Document the patient’s stated [gender identity].
• Document [gender identity], name, and pronouns without quotation marks around them.

Identity is not a choice; and identity is not a thing:

• Document name and pronouns without the term “preferred.”
• Document gender without the phrase “identifies as.”

Amid the treatment of a human body, doctors should exclude irrelevant information such as that body’s sex:

• Avoid medically irrelevant mention of sex-assigned-at-birth.

If a male says, “I’m a woman” — or a female says, “I’m a man” — don’t indicate that fact:

• Avoid terms such as “male-to-female,” “female-to-male,” “FTM,” or “MTF” unless patient specifies identifying with one of these terms.

And don’t stigmatize:

• Remove stigmatizing International Classification of Diseases codes and terminology from notes. Examples include “Gender Identity Disorder” and “High risk homosexual behavior.”

It’s a new day; feelings are everything, and disagreement is harm. Science must enjoy no exception:

University Renames Its Women’s Clinic Because ‘Women’ Was Medically Inaccurate

American Medical Association Wokes Up, Cancels Terms Such as ‘Morbidly Obese’ and ‘Inmates’

Medical School Hosts Seminar on ‘Body Terrorism’ Against ‘Fat LGBTQ+ People’

Doctor Questions ‘Structural Racism’ on a Podcast, Gets Booted From the Planet’s Leading Medical Journal

Medical School Eyes Hiring ‘Leaders’ Based on Social Justice Views, Teaching Organs Aren’t Gender-Specific

Medical School Professor Suggests Hate Crime Charges for Anyone Who Criticizes Government Scientists

Hospitals Are Starting to Ask Men if They’re Pregnant

Medical School Launches Transgender Nursing Program, Cites Women’s Need for Prostate Exams

As indicated in the study, reviewing one’s own medical records is possible partly due to a law signed by Obama:

The 21st Century Cures Act and the OpenNotes movement have brought patients immediate access to their electronic health records… The experiences of marginalized people, including transgender people, accessing and reviewing their EHRs could inform documentation guidelines to improve patient-clinician rapport and reduce harm.

Said damage will be radically reduced if doctors mix their medicinal moves with a splash of social savvy. Or, perhaps, the other way around.

In 2023, microaggressions are a medical malady. Thankfully, there’s a cure: wokeness.

-ALEX

See more content from me:

‘How Dare You’: Obstetrician Is Aghast at the Claim That Men Can’t Give Birth

Iconic Cosmetics Brand Taps Beautifully-Bearded Model to Sell You Lipstick

Sorority Kicks out Woman Because She’s Also a Man

Find all my RedState work here.

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