Assessments and Planning for Gender-affirming Surgery

COURSE DESCRIPTION Quality "letters" start with quality assessments and planning. In this course, participants will learn how to collaborate with and prepare clients for transgender-affirming surgery using a comprehensive assessment to screen for biopsychosocial factors that can complicate, or be complicated by, surgery and perioperative care; create a holistic treatment recommendation; and support clients through the steps of surgical preparation and recovery. Participants will learn about to the fundamental dynamics of each gender-affirming surgery that is covered by insurance, and learn their choice of surgical in Oregon. TARGET AUDIENCE: licensed and unlicensed LPC, LCSW, LMFT, PsyD providers PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE: competence and experience working with transgender and non-binary clients LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Define WPATH, insurance, and surgeon requirements for quality letters and assessments. • Learn basic knowledge about insurance credentialing, contracting, and billing for standalone assessments. • Present the purpose and rationale of an assessment to a client. • Conduct a thorough mental health assessment for gender affirming surgery. • Present the expectations for chest reconstruction, breast augmentation, metoidioplasty, orchiectomy, hysterectomy/oophorectomy, phalloplasty, electrolysis, vaginoplasty, and facial feminization surgeries. • Have concrete tools for preparing clients for surgery. • Write a comprehensive letter of support that is consistent with WPATH standards of care, insurance and surgeon’s criteria, and includes a surgery preparation treatment plan. TRAINING MODALITIES During this training, participants will engage in didactic presentation, self-reflection, case reviews, mock treatment planning, videos of clients’ experiences, and paired role-play. After the training, participants pursuing CEU credit are expected to attend 1-3 Brave Space consultations to discuss actual client cases, and will receive review and feedback on 3 referral letters. Those who complete all parts of the training will be added to a vetted list of providers shared by Brave Space and community medical providers. Participants will gain access to the Brave Space Surgery Planning Guide, a helpful tool for perioperative planning, quality letter and assessment templates, and the Powerpoint slide for future reference.