Charing Cross Workshop

• Posted by Elizabeth (Liz) September 30, 2014 2,699 views
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  Today (30th September 2014) I attended a workshop at Charing Cross GIC. I was a bit unsure about how useful it would be, and a few girls have mentioned cutting official waiting lists as an excuse for them. That may be the case, but I'm glad I went. Just some background, I found out that the workshops started in June this year. Yes there is a huge backlog of patients and the waiting list for the first assessment now stands at 13 months!!! Still, it took me 41 years to wake up to myself, and February isn't really that far away.

  Anyway, onto the workshop which started with a bit of form filling and a brief medical, blood pressure, height, weight, waist size. Nothing too taxing. This was followed by a presentation. 

  It started with a brief history of the clinic from Dr James Barrett, including some of the struggles they've had persuading the rest of the NHS about the value of the service. Then onto the myths and legends about how they operate. It was interesting to hear that some things, like "you must attend in gender specific attire" were actually required, but that was a long time ago. Following this we were taken through the process, the two stage assessments, what to expect, the things you could and couldn't get on the NHS. They've just started funding facial hair removal, good to know having had 6 expensive sessions!

  Following the presentation there was a Q&A session with lots of really good questions. Some of the questions showed a lack of research, but there was clearly interest in all of the answers. This part actually overran.

  The audience was really mixed in terms of M-F and F-M and also where people were on their transition. It was nice to chat to a few of them afterwards and hear their experiences.

  So what did I get out of this? I got the bad news about the 13 month wait for the 1st assessment, but now I know, it's the not knowing that I found so frustrating. Now I have a (rough) date. It was also great to know that the workshops are voluntary (if you miss it there's no penalty) and very informal. This gave me the chance to visit the clinic and the area for the first time without the added pressure of an assessment, and the staff seem really friendly, unlike other NHS departments. I think that when the time eventually arrives for the all important assessment, I'll be much more relaxed. 

  If you're on the waiting list and you get invited, go along, it may be a way of cutting official waiting times, but it's well worth it.