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Quarter 3 (Jan-Mar) update

Current status

As at 30 March 2024, there were 337 people on the active wait list for their first specialist assessment (FSA) as part of the Gender Affirming (Genital) Surgery Service (the Service). Of those 337 people, 94 have had an FSA.

Three surgeries have been performed so far in 2024 with two surgeries planned for April.  

The Service is currently reviewing groups of patients who were referred between October 2018 to December 2021, before an FSA can be offered.

As part of our ongoing waitlist review process, patients referred during 2021 have been contacted to provide updated health and wellbeing questionnaires. Each patient’s General Practitioner (GP) needs to complete the health and wellbeing questionnaire so the service has an understanding of their current health status before an FSA can be offered.

Patients who do not meet the service’s FSA criteria, do not respond to communication or who do not provide the GP completed information will not be considered or removed from the wait list as part of the review process.

Patients and their GP's or referrers are being advised of these requirements. The Service will provide updates to patients, their GP’s, or referrers each quarter on any changes or progress made.

This is consistent with the regional hospitals’ current pathways of accessing elective reconstructive surgeries, including top (chest reconstruction/breast removal) surgeries, breast reconstructions and breast reductions.

It is important that you contact us immediately if you decide you no longer want to be considered for an FSA/no longer want surgery, or if your contact details, home address, or GP has changed. Email us at gender.surgery@health.govt.nz to let us know about any changes.

Wrap around health and wellbeing support for the Service

Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora is working to improve and increase wrap around services. 

The wrap around services will include the establishment of several new roles to provide more intensive health and wellbeing support for patients on the waiting list for an FSA and/or preparing for surgery. 

One of these support roles is Pathways Health. Pathways is a leading national provider of community-based mental health and addiction services operating across Aoteroa New Zealand. Pathways was formed in 1989 and is currently operating in fifteen regions across the country contracted to Te Whatu Ora and Oranga Tamariki-Ministry for Children. 

Pathways provides a number of services centred around transportation to/from accommodation, post-surgical appointments and collecting food/medications.

Learn more about Pathways

 

New referrals to the service

New referrals for gender affirming genital surgery can be made by the person’s transgender health professional. This is normally an endocrinologist or a sexual health physician. In Wellington and Christchurch , a referral from a general practitioner with special expertise in transgender care may be accepted. 

For referral acceptance to be considered patients need to:

  • meet the eligibility criteria set out in the Standards of Care for the Health of Transsexual, Transgender and Gender Nonconforming People, published by The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) version seven. The Service is not currently accepting new referrals for patients being assessed under version eight. 
  • be eligible for publicly funded surgery and residing in New Zealand 
  • be physically and mentally fit to undertake a complex surgical procedure. This includes being a non-smoker (including nicotine based vapes and recreational drugs) having a BMI under 35 and social support. People being referred for the first time should note that a BMI of between 30-34 is acceptable for an initial referral however must be under 30 to proceed to surgery.

The chart below sets out the number of new referrals received by quarter between January 2013 and  March 2024. Overall, 77 percent of the referrals are for feminising surgery and 23 percent are for masculinising surgery.

New referrals to the Service

A bar chart showing number of new referrals received by quarter A bar chart showing number of new referrals received by quarter A bar chart showing number of new referrals received by quarter

Previous updates from the last year