Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) people experience significant health disparities, including many conditions that are often first identified in primary care. However, LGBTQ people face significant barriers to accessing primary care. Healthcare providers and staff may hold negative attitudes about LGBTQ people or are not trained to provide quality care to LGBTQ individuals. LGBTQ people also may avoid seeking care altogether because they fear being treated poorly.
PIRE researchers, led by Cathleen Willging and Robert Sturm, have been working for three years to understand these barriers to care and how to best address them.
Along with collaborators from across New Mexico and the country, they developed the LGBTQ Primary Care Toolkit. A Scientific Advisory Board of LGBTQ patients and patient advocates, direct service providers, and researchers guided the Toolkit’s development. The work on the Toolkit was funded by a grant (R21MD011648) from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities.
Collaborator logos, from left to right: PIRE, University of New Mexico, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico, New Mexico Community AIDS Partnership, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, and New Mexico Primary Care Association
The Toolkit offers insight into the major health and healthcare disparities impacting the diverse members of the LGBTQ population. The toolkit also provides a model for clinic-led organizational change that is relevant for many different quality improvements in clinics, not just primary care for LGBTQ patients.
Originally developed as a single document, the Toolkit is now available on an easy-to-use website, allowing greater access! Visit it at lgbtqprimarycare.com to learn more about the Toolkit and let us know what you think! We welcome any and all ideas for making it better!
