New scientific statement says discrimination contributes to poorer heart health in LGBTQ adults
A new scientific statement published by The American Heart Association says discrimination is contributing to poorer heart health for LGBTQ adults.
News Channel 3’s Caitlin Thropay met with a local doctor to find out more.
According to the statement, "56% of LGBTQ adults and 70% of those who are transgender report experiencing some form of discrimination including harsh or abusive language from a health care professional."
Read the full scientific statement here.
Dr. Michael Jardula has been a primary care physician in Palm Springs for 16 years. He treats a large number of people in the LGBTQ population at his practice. He also identifies himself as gay in the LGBTQ community.
“We have to be really cognizant of what transgender, lesbian and gay medicine is all about and get to know what their communities, what their beliefs are, what their concerns are and really try to effectively develop a rapport and trust because that’s key,” Dr. Jardula told News Channel 3.
Dr. Jardula said people should not be afraid to go to the doctor.
“We want them to trust us, not be afraid to hold back in terms of complaints, illnesses, seek out preventative care like everybody else,” he said.
Dr. Jardula shared how other physicians can help so their patients don’t feel discriminated against.
“Ask an introduction question so that you get to know what the patient is about and where they’re coming from in terms of their sexual identity and if they have a significant partner, do they have a relationship, are they married so you want to know their whole family dynamic,” he said.
He said this helps patients open up. He also said changes need to happen in the way health care professionals are trained.
“It’s important to have the entire office from the front desk to the nursing staff to the physician to when you leave all be on the same page and to understand and be empathetic,” he shared.
In the statement, it discusses a 2018 online survey of students at 10 medical schools. That survey found about 80% of students did not feel competent to provide care for transgender patients.
“The LGBTQ population does have its own inherent health issues that if not addressed will lead to more significant disease particularly heart disease,” Dr. Jardula said.
The scientific statement also mentions that transgender women may be at increased risk for cardiovascular disease due to the use of gender-affirming hormones like estrogen.
Though more research is needed, Dr. Jardula said this scientific statement from The American Heart Association is a start.
“It really raises a lot of questions and ideas about what types of research we can tackle and where to look into what communities and to what risk factors we can identify,” he said.
