This page contains suggestions for books to read on transgender health care divided into the following categories of health care.
Books with titles in blue are those that ECU provides through the catalog online, and the blue text is a link to that webpage. Other books can be requested through the ECU Libraries ILL service.

Transgender and Gender Diverse Health Care: the Fenway Guide
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The first case-based comprehensive textbook to address the unique health care needs of transgender and gender diverse adults A Doody's Core Title for 2023! Demand for state-of-the-art health care services for transgender and gender diverse communities is rapidly increasing. Transgender and Gender Diverse Health Care: The Fenway Guide offers a roadmap for clinicians to provide culturally responsive care that meets the primary, preventive, and specialty health needs of transgender and gender diverse adult patients. With the most up-to-date scientific and clinical information, this practical guide reviews new data on terminology, demographics, and epidemiology; highlights key aspects of gender identity emergence across the lifespan; and provides guidance on both hormonal and surgical gender affirmation. Applying a health-equity model of care, this invaluable resource offers a foundation for clinicians when addressing health needs of transgender and gender diverse communities. Transgender and Gender Diverse Health Care: The Fenway Guide features essential information that includes the following topics and more: The history and epidemiology of transgender and gender diverse health care Primary, preventive, and specialty care considerations for transgender and gender diverse patients Hormonal, surgical and non-medical gender affirmation Trauma-informed and gender-affirming care Behavior health, eating disorders and body positivity Reproductive health, obstetrical care, and family building Treatment of HIV and sexually transmitted infections Community building, advocacy and partnership
Standards of Care for the Health of Transgender and Gender Diverse People, Version 8
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Background: Transgender healthcare is a rapidly evolving interdisciplinary field. In the last decade, there has been an unprecedented increase in the number and visibility of transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people seeking support and gender-affirming medical treatment
in parallel with a significant rise in the scientific literature in this area. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) is an international, multidisciplinary, professional association whose mission is to promote evidence-based care, education, research, public policy, and respect in transgender health. One of the main functions of WPATH is to promote the highest standards of health care for TGD people through the Standards of Care (SOC). The SOC was initially developed in 1979 and the last version (SOC-7) was published in 2012. In view of the increasing scientific evidence, WPATH commissioned a new version of the Standards of Care, the SOC-8.
Aim: The overall goal of SOC-8 is to provide health care professionals (HCPs) with clinical guidance to assist TGD people in accessing safe and effective pathways to achieving lasting
personal comfort with their gendered selves with the aim of optimizing their overall physical
health, psychological well-being, and self-fulfillment.
Methods: The SOC-8 is based on the best available science and expert professional consensus
in transgender health. International professionals and stakeholders were selected to serve
on the SOC-8 committee. Recommendation statements were developed based on data
derived from independent systematic literature reviews, where available, background reviews
and expert opinions. Grading of recommendations was based on the available evidence
supporting interventions, a discussion of risks and harms, as well as the feasibility and
acceptability within different contexts and country settings.
Results: A total of 18 chapters were developed as part of the SOC-8. They contain
recommendations for health care professionals who provide care and treatment for TGD
people. Each of the recommendations is followed by explanatory text with relevant references.
General areas related to transgender health are covered in the chapters Terminology, Global
Applicability, Population Estimates, and Education. The chapters developed for the diverse
population of TGD people include Assessment of Adults, Adolescents, Children, Nonbinary,
Eunuchs, and Intersex Individuals, and people living in Institutional Environments. Finally,
the chapters related to gender-affirming treatment are Hormone Therapy, Surgery and
Postoperative Care, Voice and Communication, Primary Care, Reproductive Health, Sexual
Health, and Mental Health.
Conclusions: The SOC-8 guidelines are intended to be flexible to meet the diverse health
care needs of TGD people globally. While adaptable, they offer standards for promoting
optimal health care and guidance for the treatment of people experiencing gender
incongruence. As in all previous versions of the SOC, the criteria set forth in this document
for gender-affirming medical interventions are clinical guidelines; individual health care
professionals and programs may modify these in consultation with the TGD person.