Creating Environments of Care With Transgender Communities

Partnerships between transgender individuals and community health nurses have been a primary source of monitoring and responding to the impact of the HIV epidemic on transgender communities, specifically transgender women. This article provides two perspectives: first, from a transgender service provider, and second, from a public health nurse, on forming partnerships that brought consumers and providers together to create environments of care in which many transgender persons living with and at high risk of HIV were able to engage with medical providers who believed in their right to self-determination. The process led to an increased understanding of HIV prevention and treatment needs, better individual-level health outcomes, and institutional change, including the creation of a transgender medical clinic serving homeless transgender individuals in greater Boston.

Key words: clinic development, community-based partnerships, harm reduction, HIV prevention, homeless populations, mobile health initiatives, transgender health