Understanding the LGBT communities

Abstract

Nearly every lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) patient in the U.S. accesses health care at non-LGBT affiliated medical facilities. This chapter is an introduction for the busy practitioner to the unique health needs of sexual and gender minorities. Many providers are comfortable asking the question "Do you have sex with men, women, or both?", but it is sometimes difficult to know how to translate this information into improved clinical outcomes. The art of medicine goes well beyond data gathering. To that aim, this chapter discusses LGBT history, demographics, and medical terminology. Understanding LGBT history will help providers build therapeutic alliance and better understand the relationship between minority stress and health disparities. An exploration of demographics reveals the natural variation of sexual orientation, gender expression and gender identity across all racial, religious, and socioeconomic populations that you will serve, regardless of specialty. An exploration and deconstruction of the varied terminology used by and for LGBT patients can help even experienced health care providers improve their data gathering and communication skills. It is our hope that this chapter will not only help you improve the well-being of your patients, but excite you to seek out opportunities to serve these unique, diverse, resilient communities.