Dr Sam Hall, former Scene columnist and doctor at WellBN, has told an inquest into the death of 20-year-old trans woman Alice Litman that suicidal feelings in the trans community and young people are “devastatingly common” and that much of this is due to “non acceptance of trans identities in wider society”.
The inquest in Hove heard that at the time of her death in May 2022, Alice had been waiting 1,023 days for gender affirming healthcare.
Alice, who was prescribed cross-sex hormones by the service in April 2020, registered with WellBN in April 2022 and had expressed she felt like “life was not worth living” and that she believed her hormone treatment was not being properly managed.
Dr Hall said more GP surgeries should provide hormone prescriptions for transgender people, adding that “Trans care belongs in primary care. Not least because we can get to people first.”
According to Dr Hall, Alice was “disappointed” that an appointment in May 2022 with another doctor for an ear problem was not to do with her hormone prescription.
Dr Hall said there was a wait of eight to 12 weeks for these appointments where hormones would be thoroughly discussed.
However, he said Alice had told the doctor she was feeling better and had recently stopped taking her anti-depressants.
Dr Hall was also asked about how trans people cope with setbacks in their transition.
“Some are extremely resilient and know exactly what they want and how to get it,” he said.
“Looking in hindsight Alice did not have that level of resilience.”
The inquest heard there are currently more than 13,000 people on the waiting list for a first appointment at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust Gender Identity Clinic and that in some cases people have been waiting five years to see a professional.
