LGBTQ-centered healthcare program launches in New Jersey
NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey (WABC) -- The launch of the PROUD Gender Center of New Jersey, the first of its kind in the state, will offer a broad range of services designed to meet the healthcare needs of the LGBTQ+ community.
The groundbreaking partnership established between the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) and Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, will combine resources to provide comprehensive and multidisciplinary approaches all in one central location in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
"This is a place where people can be who they want to be without hesitation or being afraid that they will be discriminated against or ostracized by the healthcare providers," said Jackie Baras, LGBT Program Director and LGBT Health Navigator for RWJUH.
The Center will feature specialists in transgender health who will provide services like hormonal therapy and surgical procedures to support the transition of transgender patients.
"The PROUD Gender Center does not look at the patient as a diagnosis and that is one of the biggest problems that many in this population have encountered; rather we look at the entire individual, their culture and what their needs are," said Dr. Gloria Bachmann, Medical Director of the PROUD Gender Center of New Jersey at RWJUH and Director of the Women's Health Institute at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
Additionally, the services of the PROUD Gender Center will include facial feminization and masculinization surgery, hormone therapy, gynecology/urology, otolaryngology/vocal training, support group, and advocacy resources as well as referral to behavioral and mental health services.
"This is a place where the community can come and seek different clinical services and feel welcomed and treated with respect and dignity," said Vanessa Nazario, Director of Inclusion and Diversity at RWJUH.
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