Bridging Health and Humanity: Gender-Affirming Care Saves Lives

Transgender Care-web.png

Bridging Health and Humanity:
Gender-Affirming Care Saves Lives

Dec. 1, 2025

In this episode of EMRA*Cast's "Bridging Health and Humanity," host Natalie Hernandez interviews Dr. Jailyn Avila about the importance of gender-affirming care in the emergency department.

Show Notes

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Host

Natalie Hernandez, MD, MPH

UCSF Medical Education Fellow, 2025
Harbor-UCLA EM Residency Class of 2025
EMRA*Cast Episodes

Guest

Jailyn Avila, MD

Ultrasound Fellowship Co-Director, United Health Services Southern California Medical Education Consortium
Co-Founder, Core Ultrasound
@Jailyn_Avi

OVERVIEW

In this episode of EMRA*Cast's "Bridging Health and Humanity," host Natalie Hernandez interviews Dr. Jailyn Avila about the importance of gender-affirming care in the emergency department. Dr. Avila highlights the significant health disparities and challenges faced by LGBTQIA+ patients, including a reluctance to seek care in the ED due to fear of discrimination and past negative experiences.

The conversation covers the critical aspect of treating trans patients with the same respect and care as cis patients, avoiding irrelevant medical questions, and implementing small changes in practice to create a supportive environment. Dr. Avila shares personal experiences as a transgender woman, emphasizes the necessity of advocacy, and provides actionable steps for clinicians to improve the care and trust of LGBTQIA+ patients.

The episode also addresses the impact of recent restrictive policies on the health care of trans individuals and calls for education, advocacy, and systemic change to support this vulnerable population.

Publisher's Resources

Please see EMRA's resources:

Objectives

By the end of this episode, listeners will be able to:

  • Describe key health disparities affecting LGBTQIA+ patients, including delayed care-seeking due to fear of discrimination and high rates of negative ED experiences.
  • Explain how gender-affirming care reduces mental health distress and suicidality, and differentiate gender identity from mental illness.
  • Recognize the impact of stigma, legislation, and societal discrimination on the health, safety, and health care access of LGBTQIA+ individuals.
  • Demonstrate respectful communication practices, including the use of correct names and pronouns, and applying trauma-informed inquiry when asking potentially sensitive questions.
  • Implement practical strategies to create an affirming ED environment, such as:
    • Avoiding irrelevant or intrusive questions.
    • Prefacing necessary but sensitive history-taking with clinical rationale.
    • Correcting team members who misgender or misuse names.
    • Identifying visible allyship cues (e.g., pronouns on badges).
  • Distinguish relevant clinical considerations for transgender patients, such as:
    • Risks associated with different forms of estrogen and androgen blockers.
    • Typical hormone regimens and their implications in ED presentations.
    • Understanding that risk profiles shift after hormone therapy.
  • Apply best practices when caring for LGBTQIA+ minors, including private HEADSSS assessments, confidentiality around identity, and safe documentation practices.
  • Identify ways to advocate within restrictive or hostile environments, including speaking up, modeling allyship, and addressing bias at the institution or team level.
  • Access reliable educational resources (e.g., The Trevor Project, Human Rights Campaign, EMRA LGBTQIA+ guides, Erin in the Morning) to continue building knowledge and advocacy skills.
  • Recognize the importance of allyship and community support in improving health care experiences and outcomes for LGBTQIA+ patients.

References

EMRACast Social EM

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