Long waits and an 'unacceptable' lack of data at NHS gender clinics

Doctors treating vulnerable patients with gender dysphoria have no way of assessing whether the NHS treatment provided has worked because outcomes are not systematically recorded, a damning official inquiry into the clinics has found.

- Amelia Gentleman

Waiting times for a first appointment at NHS adult gender dysphoria clinics (GDCs) in England are projected to reach 15 years unless there are improvements, the review found.

The number of people seeking treatment is rising significantly and on average patients are already waiting five years and seven months for a first assessment.

The review, conducted by Dr David Levy, an NHS medical director and cancer specialist, was commissioned after last year’s Cass report on gender care for children and young people.

Levy took a team to nine NHS England clinics to assess the effectiveness and safety of each service, interviewing staff and patients.

His report found that the clinics’ failure to study outcomes for their patients made it impossible to judge the safety of these services.

“It is unacceptable that there is no outcomes data to support or guide patients, clinicians, and commissioners in understanding which treatments and interventions may deliver the best outcomes for patients,” the review warned.