Format: Self-paced / asynchronous program
Engage with this recorded program on your schedule.
CE: 2 CEs total, read for more information on CEs
Fee: $35, read for more information on fees and scholarships
Description: This workshop explores the ethical nuances of providing gender-affirming mental health care to transgender clients and clients with gender dysphoria. The speaker will provide relevant background and conceptual frameworks, and will lead participants to consider ethical tensions involved in mental health diagnosis, case formulation, and treatment for trans people. This workshop examines the ethics of providing trans-affirming care through an intersectional framework. Participants will engage in experiential practice to increase self-knowledge and reflexivity. Participants will also receive support and guidance about how to ethically support trans clients, reduce harm imposed on trans clients and communities by the social work industrial complex, and contribute to trans liberation.
(For those seeking an introductory training on terminology and work with trans clients, please see this training opportunity)
Learning Objectives:
- Describe at least 1 ethical issue embedded in the history of gender dysphoria as a mental health diagnosis
- Identify at least 1 ethical tension in the role of mental health practitioner as gatekeeper to gender-affirming care for transgender individuals
- Discuss at least 2 ethical considerations related to using self-knowledge and reflexivity in treating trans clients
Trainer: Raye Dooley, MPH, MSW, LCSWA is a trans social worker from the South. They currently work as a therapist in private practice, where they focus on serving trans and intersex clients as well as others on the LGBQA spectrum. Raye has worked in settings ranging from a pediatric gender care clinic to a statewide anti-domestic violence agency. They hold an MSW and an MPH from UNC Chapel Hill and are passionate about social work that falls at the intersection of clinical practice and social justice. Raye also holds a Certificate in Therapeutic Horticulture from the NC Botanical Garden and particularly loves thinking about how trans people can heal from oppression by connecting to the earth we inhabit.
References:
- Ashley, F. (2019). The misuse of gender dysphoria: Toward greater conceptual clarity in transgender health. Perspectives on Psychological Science. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/ 10.1177/1745691619872987
- Cavanaugh, T., Hopwood, R., & Lambert, C. (2016). Informed consent in the medical care of transgender and gender non-conforming patients. AMA Journal of Ethics, 18(11), 1147-1155. https://doi.org/10.1001/journalofethics.2016.18.11.sect1-1611
- Korell, S. C., & Lorah, P. (2007). An Overview of Affirmative Psychotherapy and Counseling With Transgender Clients. In K. J. Bieschke, R. M. Perez, & K. A. DeBord (Eds.), Handbook of counseling and psychotherapy with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender clients (pp. 271–288). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/11482-011
- Mizock, L., & Lundquist, C. (2016). Missteps in psychotherapy with transgender clients: Promoting gender sensitivity in counseling and psychological practice. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 3(2), 148–155. https://doi.org/10.1037/sgd0000177
- Schultz, S. (2017). The informed consent model of transgender care: An alternative to the diagnosis of gender dysphoria. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 58(1), 72-92. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022167817745217
- Spade, D. (2015). Normal life: Administrative Violence, critical trans politics, & the limits of law. Duke University Press.
- Zucker, K. (2017). Epidemiology of gender dysphoria and transgender identity. Sexual Health, 14(5), 404-411. https://doi.org/10.1071/SH17067