British sex change clinics ‘overwhelmed’ as demand for gender reassignment surgery reaches record levels
Trans people face HUGE waiting lists as Brits rush to swap their sex
British sex surgeries are becoming overwhelmed as more and more people seek to undergo gender reassignment treatment.
Statistics have shown that some surgeries have seen demand shoot up over the past 10 years as society became increasingly accepting of trans-sexuality.
Figures obtained by The Guardian show the Charing Cross Clinic in London dealt with 1,892 people last year, up from 498 in the year between 2006 and 2007.
“It obviously can’t continue like that forever because we’d be treating everyone in the country, but there isn’t any sign of that levelling off," said psychiatrist James Barrett.
Dr Leighton Seal, an endocrinologist from the Charing Cross clinic, that the surge occurred because the world was becoming more accepting of trans people.
“I think the societal change has been really important, society is more tolerant, more accepting and people who are gender-nonconforming are a lot more visible. I think trans people have also found their voice as well,” he said.
One clinic in Nottingham saw its caseload swell by a factor of 28, with just 30 patients seen in 2008 and 850 in 2015.
Similar patterns were also recorded in Sheffield, Northamptonshire and Exeter, whilst in Glasgow the numbers have merely doubled.
One clinic in Leeds said its waiting list was now four years long.
On average, the waiting time for a sex change therapy is nine months for adults and half this time for kids.
Experts claim this wait could be disastrous, as trans people are more likely to commit suicide than the rest of the British population.
“You’re referred from your GP, there is no contact with any specialists or clinicians until your first appointment at the gender identity clinic,” said Louie Stafford, trans coordinator with the LGBT Foundation.
“People are completely on their own, sometimes for up to three years, dealing with issues around gender that are potentially life-threatening … It’s not surprising that people get desperate in that timeframe.”
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