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| NHS use of puberty blockers legal challenge begins | NHS use of puberty blockers legal challenge begins |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Legal action is being launched against the NHS over the prescribing of drugs to delay puberty. | Legal action is being launched against the NHS over the prescribing of drugs to delay puberty. |
| Papers have been lodged at the High Court by a mother and a nurse against the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust, which runs the UK's only gender-identity development service (Gids). | Papers have been lodged at the High Court by a mother and a nurse against the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust, which runs the UK's only gender-identity development service (Gids). |
| Lawyers will argue it is illegal to prescribe the drugs, as children cannot give informed consent to the treatment. | Lawyers will argue it is illegal to prescribe the drugs, as children cannot give informed consent to the treatment. |
| The Tavistock said it had a "cautious and considered" approach to treatment. | The Tavistock said it had a "cautious and considered" approach to treatment. |
| Referrals up | Referrals up |
| The nurse, Sue Evans, left the Gids more than a decade ago after becoming increasingly concerned teenagers who wanted to transition to a different gender were being given the puberty blockers without adequate assessments and psychological work. | The nurse, Sue Evans, left the Gids more than a decade ago after becoming increasingly concerned teenagers who wanted to transition to a different gender were being given the puberty blockers without adequate assessments and psychological work. |
| Since then, she says, even younger children are being given the drugs, which block the hormones that lead to puberty-related changes including periods and facial hair. | Since then, she says, even younger children are being given the drugs, which block the hormones that lead to puberty-related changes including periods and facial hair. |
| The number of young people referred to the Gids rose from 678 in 2014-15 to 2,590 in the past year. | The number of young people referred to the Gids rose from 678 in 2014-15 to 2,590 in the past year. |
| Of these 2,590: | Of these 2,590: |
| Ms Evans said: "I used to feel concerned it was being given to 16-year-olds. | Ms Evans said: "I used to feel concerned it was being given to 16-year-olds. |
| "But now, the age limit has been lowered - and children as young as perhaps nine or 10 are being asked to give informed consent to a completely experimental treatment for which the long-term consequences are not known." | "But now, the age limit has been lowered - and children as young as perhaps nine or 10 are being asked to give informed consent to a completely experimental treatment for which the long-term consequences are not known." |
| 'Too young' | 'Too young' |
| The mother, known only as Mrs A, has a 15-year-old with autism who is on the waiting list for treatment at the Gids. | The mother, known only as Mrs A, has a 15-year-old with autism who is on the waiting list for treatment at the Gids. |
| She told BBC News her child presents to the outside world as a boy but, while she is happy to allow that, she is extremely concerned about the possibility of drugs that are not fully understood being prescribed. | She told BBC News her child presents to the outside world as a boy but, while she is happy to allow that, she is extremely concerned about the possibility of drugs that are not fully understood being prescribed. |
| "I'm worried that they will look at her age and say, 'Well, she still says this is what she wants and therefore we will put her on to a medical pathway,'" Mrs A told BBC News. | "I'm worried that they will look at her age and say, 'Well, she still says this is what she wants and therefore we will put her on to a medical pathway,'" Mrs A told BBC News. |
| "And given her communication of what she feels internally is slightly different because of her autism spectrum, I worry that what she says and what she means are often two different things." | "And given her communication of what she feels internally is slightly different because of her autism spectrum, I worry that what she says and what she means are often two different things." |
| What are puberty blockers? | What are puberty blockers? |
| They are drugs which can pause the development of things like breasts, periods, facial hair and voice breaking | They are drugs which can pause the development of things like breasts, periods, facial hair and voice breaking |
| They can be prescribed to children with gender dysphoria who feel their sex at birth doesn't match up with their gender. | They can be prescribed to children with gender dysphoria who feel their sex at birth doesn't match up with their gender. |
| This is meant to give them more time to weigh up their options before they go through the physical changes of puberty. | This is meant to give them more time to weigh up their options before they go through the physical changes of puberty. |
| Although puberty blockers are described by the NHS as reversible, Gids acknowledges that their impact on brain development and psychological health is not fully known. | Although puberty blockers are described by the NHS as reversible, Gids acknowledges that their impact on brain development and psychological health is not fully known. |
| Read more: What are puberty blockers? | |
| Mrs A said here child was too young to really assess the potential impact of puberty blockers on the rest of their life, including such things as fertility. | Mrs A said here child was too young to really assess the potential impact of puberty blockers on the rest of their life, including such things as fertility. |
| "As an adolescent, what we think will make us happy is not necessarily what will make us happy," she told BBC News. | "As an adolescent, what we think will make us happy is not necessarily what will make us happy," she told BBC News. |
| "It might help us in the short term - but it might not help us in the long term." | "It might help us in the short term - but it might not help us in the long term." |
| 'Rated good' | 'Rated good' |
| A Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust official said: "It is not appropriate for us to comment in detail in advance of any proposed legal proceedings. | A Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust official said: "It is not appropriate for us to comment in detail in advance of any proposed legal proceedings. |
| "The Gids is one of the longest-established services of its type in the world with an international reputation for being cautious and considered. | "The Gids is one of the longest-established services of its type in the world with an international reputation for being cautious and considered. |
| "Our clinical interventions are laid out in nationally set service specifications. | "Our clinical interventions are laid out in nationally set service specifications. |
| "NHS England monitors our service very closely. | "NHS England monitors our service very closely. |
| "The service has a high level of reported satisfaction and was rated good by the Care Quality Commission." | "The service has a high level of reported satisfaction and was rated good by the Care Quality Commission." |