Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Hi everyone :). I was referred directly to the Charing cross GIC by my GP. It was about 4 weeks ago. Am I supposed to recieve a letter from them or something? Do they atleast contact you to inform you of your appointment. Thanks xxx

Congrats and hope that your wait time will be short.

Yes, on the NHS you will eventually receive a letter detailing your appointment time. From experience, this is normally received about two months or so before your appointment. You can also call up to ask how the progress is if you are feeling impatient! Then again, if you are NHS, you will need lots and lots of patience unfortunately! ^_^

Congratulations on the referral though! First few steps!

Thanks so much. I guess I should phone them to find out about the progress. Not to seem rude or anything but I feel a bit agitated by the waiting time. I have male patter n baldness which is getting worse and althoufh I could buy finestride on prescription it costs too much for me to afford.

I was also referred to Charing Cross (CX) at first.  It seems like the only default option GPs know about.  That might be one reason the waiting list at CX is about a year for the first appointment:

http://www.wlmht.nhs.uk/gi/gender-identity-clinic/about-the-clinic/frequently-asked-questions/

I waited about 2 months and never heard anything, not even a "you're in the queue".  One I learned about their long waiting list, I chose a different GIC and gave my GP the details for a new referral.  Then, I only had to wait 6 weeks before I was sitting in the new GIC for my first appointment.

Hopefully CX is working on a plan to reduce their waiting times.  The maximum wait should be 18 weeks:

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/02/20/nhs-england-trans-people-shouldnt-wait-longer-than-18-weeks-for-treatment/

You might have to see your GP again to check on the referral or ask to be sent to a different GIC if you're willing to travel like I was.

Quote from: tesseract49 on March 24, 2015, 05:40:32 AM
I have male pattern baldness which is getting worse and althoufh I could buy finestride on prescription it costs too much for me to afford.

If you can convince your GP to prescribe the larger dose of Finasteride (Proscar) instead of the low dose (Propecia), the cost savings is HUGE.  About £5/month for generic Proscar, versus £40 or so for Propecia.

Thanks so much. Are you saying that I could be precribed finestride on the NHS? I have only tried to buy kn online pharmacies that have an online questionaire to get the prescription. It costs about £50 per month.

Quote from: tesseract49 on March 24, 2015, 05:50:05 AM
Thanks so much. Are you saying that I could be precribed finestride on the NHS? I have only tried to buy kn online pharmacies that have an online questionaire to get the prescription. It costs about £50 per month.

Well, my NHS GP writes it as a private prescription.  But the reality is, at Superdrug, the cost is less than the NHS prescription cost of £7.  :P  Those online pharmacies will only prescribe the low dose (expensive and patented) version I think.

Quote from: tesseract49 on March 24, 2015, 05:40:32 AM
Thanks so much. I guess I should phone them to find out about the progress. Not to seem rude or anything but I feel a bit agitated by the waiting time. I have male patter n baldness which is getting worse and althoufh I could buy finestride on prescription it costs too much for me to afford.

You should be able to go to your GP and get started on Finasteride for male pattern baldness. The last I heard is that the effect of larger Finasteride doses is quite similar to being on cyrproterone and estrogen with respect to hair on the head.

QuoteThe maximum wait should be 18 weeks:

If only! I waited 14 months for my first appointed :|

Quote from: mfox on March 24, 2015, 05:40:54 AM
I was also referred to Charing Cross (CX) at first.  It seems like the only default option GPs know about.  That might be one reason the waiting list at CX is about a year for the first appointment:

http://www.wlmht.nhs.uk/gi/gender-identity-clinic/about-the-clinic/frequently-asked-questions/

I waited about 2 months and never heard anything, not even a "you're in the queue".  One I learned about their long waiting list, I chose a different GIC and gave my GP the details for a new referral.  Then, I only had to wait 6 weeks before I was sitting in the new GIC for my first appointment.

Hopefully CX is working on a plan to reduce their waiting times.  The maximum wait should be 18 weeks:

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/02/20/nhs-england-trans-people-shouldnt-wait-longer-than-18-weeks-for-treatment/

You might have to see your GP again to check on the referral or ask to be sent to a different GIC if you're willing to travel like I was.

If you can convince your GP to prescribe the larger dose of Finasteride (Proscar) instead of the low dose (Propecia), the cost savings is HUGE.  About £5/month for generic Proscar, versus £40 or so for Propecia.

Sorry to barge in on the thread. I have also recently been refered to the Charring Cross GIC a number of weeks ago. You mentioned that you decided to travel and go else where? Where did you go in the end?

Thank you

I was referred to Charing Cross in October 1989,my appointment finally came in May 1991!

Quote from: Oneal on March 25, 2015, 12:38:10 PM
Sorry to barge in on the thread. I have also recently been refered to the Charring Cross GIC a number of weeks ago. You mentioned that you decided to travel and go else where? Where did you go in the end?

I don't wanna bias anyone too badly, but you can see the waiting times here:  http://uktrans.info/waitingtimes

So I would recommend which ever one is most practical to you outside of London.  Note that the one in Norwich was closed.

I was referred at the very end of March 2014, the NHS funding ran out about 2 months or so ago, and up to that point they had given out appointments to those referred before the 1st of April 2014. My appointment should be one of the first in the new financial year. Apparently thy are the busiest GIC in the world. If your in a rush, I would strongly suggest that you look at travelling further afield, maybe Bristol, or Scotland, apparently you only wait weeks.
In hindsight, after suffering at the mercy of the clerical staff [glorified, meglomatic receptionists]of the actual clinic, who will, and who love to "F**K" you around, that's what I should of done. Lord knows how many desperate girls must of given up on living after dealing with these inhuman bastards. When you finally do get and go to your appointment, apparently they try to make you jump through hoops and........well I could go on, but there is some really useful info in a thread written on Feb 26th 2015 on tgboards, called "NAVIGATING MEDICAL TRANSITION FOR TRANS WOMEN in the UK". At the moment its on page 3 of the transition page. Its a fun read, and gives you a real heads up on everything that you need to know, and how to prepare for your appointment. It is a "must read" for anyone going to that particular GIC.

I hope the horror stories about CX are just due to their high volume of patients and strain of providing for them.  There are bound to be a higher number of people who've had bad experiences, and people are less eager to share OK experiences.  But after all it's a giant city.  I wouldn't expect to be treated very well as a person anywhere there, compared to less crowded towns or cities.

I had read the "guide" going into my (non-CX) GIC appointment, and expected the worst, but everyone was brilliant and I was treated respectfully as female.

QuotePatients on waiting list for a first appointment at end of month {CX}: 1514

Good Lord!!!!!!  :o

Those poor souls. :'(

Quote from: firestarter on March 25, 2015, 06:56:34 PM
but there is some really useful info in a thread written on Feb 26th 2015 on tgboards, called "NAVIGATING MEDICAL TRANSITION FOR TRANS WOMEN in the UK". At the moment its on page 3 of the transition page. Its a fun read, and gives you a real heads up on everything that you need to know, and how to prepare for your appointment. It is a "must read" for anyone going to that particular GIC.

I just read this and advise extreme caution.
While there are some valid points, e.g. what to say/not say during a psych evaluation there's a lot of negative and erroneous information and more disturbing is the overly negative attitude. I mean even the name change info is inaccurate, even implying that a Statutory Declaration isn't valid when it's now days more common than a Deed Poll. I could go on....
Please don't let this article depress you, do your own research!   

QuoteI had read the "guide" going into my (non-CX) GIC appointment, and expected the worst, but everyone was brilliant and I was treated respectfully as female.

I agree everyone was very nice there. CX gets a bad rap which is uncalled for.

If I am on Job Seeker's Allowance, does that allow me to get free medications. If so, would finasteride be free or discounted?

Quote from: firestarter on March 25, 2015, 06:56:34 PM
Apparently thy are the busiest GIC in the world. If your in a rush, I would strongly suggest that you look at travelling further afield, maybe Bristol, or Scotland, apparently you only wait weeks.

My 14 month wait was for Sandyford which is in Scotland. It really isn't that much quicker. A friend is waiting around 7-8 months for the Lothian GIC. The biggest advantage to using the Scottish services is self-referral. Not sure if the rest of the UK has that yet!

Quote from: tesseract49 on March 27, 2015, 12:09:42 AM
If I am on Job Seeker's Allowance, does that allow me to get free medications. If so, would finasteride be free or discounted?

I got free prescriptions when on JSA

Quote from: firestarter on March 25, 2015, 06:56:34 PM
Its a fun read, and gives you a real heads up on everything that you need to know, and how to prepare for your appointment. It is a "must read" for anyone going to that particular GIC.

You must have a different definition of fun because to me it seems little more than a rant by a very bitter person. Phrases like "Remember: even if they recommend HRT, they are still c**ts and not worthy of your respect " or "They will spend 45 minutes to an hour chatting about the most irrelevant nonsense and at the end of it they won't even do anything for you " should be pointers as to how seriously this "document" should be taken.

If the person that wrote that went into their appointments with that sort of attitude then I am not surprised that they had trouble with "the system".

With one exception, all the transitioners I know went through nothing like this. The big problem with the UK service is funding which means delay, but the clinicians do a good job.

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Quote from: vpfpty on March 27, 2015, 02:29:35 PM
You must have a different definition of fun because to me it seems little more than a rant by a very bitter person. Phrases like "Remember: even if they recommend HRT, they are still c**ts and not worthy of your respect " or "They will spend 45 minutes to an hour chatting about the most irrelevant nonsense and at the end of it they won't even do anything for you " should be pointers as to how seriously this "document" should be taken.

If the person that wrote that went into their appointments with that sort of attitude then I am not surprised that they had trouble with "the system".

With one exception, all the transitioners I know went through nothing like this. The big problem with the UK service is funding which means delay, but the clinicians do a good job.

I only read it, I did not write it.
After dealing with the staff over the telephone, they certainly are not friendly, or have any measure of politeness, regardless of how respectful and polite you are to them. My appointment will be soon, I am preparing myself for a very rough ride.

Quote from: firestarter on March 30, 2015, 06:26:16 AM
I only read it, I did not write it.
After dealing with the staff over the telephone, they certainly are not friendly, or have any measure of politeness, regardless of how respectful and polite you are to them. My appointment will be soon, I am preparing myself for a very rough ride.

I completely disagree. That article was rude, poorly written, contained partly inaccurate information and achieved nothing but exude negative attitude. I'm with VPFPTY on this, if someone presented at CX, or any other GIC for that matter, they wouldn't get far or deserve to. I just hope no one is influenced by it as they stand to give other patients a bad name.

CX is not without it's problems from an administrative point of view but they do try their best. Like any other NHS facility if you treat them with respect you will get respect returned. To give one small example; I was on the way to an appointment and got seriously delayed on the Tube due to a security scare. I phoned them expecting to be told to come back another day. They thanked me for letting them know and offered to see me later if I was willing to wait for a while using my appointment time for other patients. I think that's pretty reasonable. 

Quote from: CB on March 30, 2015, 07:15:53 AM
I completely disagree. That article was rude, poorly written, contained partly inaccurate information and achieved nothing but exude negative attitude. I'm with VPFPTY on this, if someone presented at CX, or any other GIC for that matter, they wouldn't get far or deserve to. I just hope no one is influenced by it as they stand to give other patients a bad name.

CX is not without it's problems from an administrative point of view but they do try their best. Like any other NHS facility if you treat them with respect you will get respect returned. To give one small example; I was on the way to an appointment and got seriously delayed on the Tube due to a security scare. I phoned them expecting to be told to come back another day. They thanked me for letting them know and offered to see me later if I was willing to wait for a while using my appointment time for other patients. I think that's pretty reasonable.

Like I've already said, I read it, I didn't write it.
Regarding your views on people being polite and respectful towards people whom are polite and respectful to them, I wish that that was true. I have been on the phone with them several times, always polite to them, but over 50% of the time they have been so rude to me, and have told me blatant lies regarding my upcoming appointment. I will still go there with the right attitude and approach, but I would be telling "porkies" if I said that I wasn't scared. I will let you have the last word as I am not going to unecsessarily keep repeating myself. Your obviously not even reading my whole post, and seem to be writing yours without even stopping to think about what it is I have actually written.

Let's keep it civil, folks.

Calm down folks - remember this is a support forum

Quote from: Jill F on March 30, 2015, 07:00:51 PM
Let's keep it civil, folks.

You beat me to it!

Just to mention on the notion of these guides of what to say and what not to say...

I went along to my first GIC appointment not knowing what to expect. I was rushed and didn't have time for little more than a dab of foundation and a tiny touch of eyeliner. My hair was also styled poorly and my presentation was androgynous. I was also incredibly nervous and scared and babbled a lot. I think I opened with questioning whether or not I even had gender dysphoria and then just laid things out honestly - from childhood experiences to preferred pronouns (at that time it was anything but masculine) to how presenting in a more feminine manner made me feel. At the end of it all I was still pretty nervous and stupidly asked my practitioner for his opinion as to whether or not I had gender dysphoria. That was given as an affirmative with his suggestion that I had a transsexual but genderqueer / non-binary identity. At the time I hadn't even considered that and I am so glad that I was introduced to such concepts.

What was more interesting was that this seemed to break down some of his barriers to chatting in a more relaxed manner for the last 5 minutes or so of the appointment. After talking a little bit about identities I raised the question of how he could be so certain. At that point he made it very clear that he, and others providing such a service on the NHS, are aware of resources that inform people of the "correct" things to say to get onto hormones or access additional services (I've had no problems with this aside from waiting times). I can only infer from this that such standard responses are noted and probably adversely affect chances of getting treatment or taken seriously.

I think the best advice is simply to be yourself. Be honest. Even if that means digging up some painful and perhaps embarrassing memories. You also don't need to neatly fit into the typical ideal of a transwoman or transguy to get treatment on the NHS.

Thank you Erin for your take on things, it was helpful and reassuring. Maybe I just need to relax, I've waited so long for the appointment with CX, and I have now worked myself up into a right tizzy.  :)

Good luck with your CX appointment. I think relaxing is key although easier said than done! I know it's repeated over and over but just being yourself and honest is the best and only thing you need to do. At my first appointment there I was so stressed I fumbled, dropped my bag and belongings all over the floor while the psychiatrist just sat there bemused by my panic. After apologising for being late he just said "well you're here now" and got on with the questions. I do believe for the most part they're OK although there is one I've heard bad things about. If you don;t mind me asking who are you seeing? (don't answer if you don;t wish to)