Transmissions:
A real shot in the arm
Published 10/04/2012
by Gwendolyn Ann Smith
http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=68127Back in 1994, the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association expanded its mission, officially welcoming transgender medical professionals into the organization and describing their organization as one serving transgender as well as gay, lesbian, and bisexual physicians, medical students, and their supporters. It was an era where the very addition of "transgender" to a gay and lesbian focused organization was a big deal.
The inclusion was short-lived. Two years later, the GLMA board struck "transgender" from the organization's description. The move was handled quietly, but word filtered out. Once the news went public, then-GLMA President Dr. Valeria Ulstad claimed it was merely attempting to better define the organization's mission.
GLMA held its 30th annual conference in San Francisco at the end of September – and I had the honor of attending. It's been many years now since GLMA re-reversed its 1996 decision, and once again states that its mission "is to ensure equality in health care for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals and health care providers."
