In another blow to the pro-trans movement, the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS) will begin testing all transgender children for autism, which has usually been overlooked in favor of blanket gender reassignment procedures.
According to a report by Dr. Hilary Cass, children with “gender-related distress” should receive a holistic assessment by medical practitioners instead of being automatically subjected to gender reassignment treatment.
Baroness Cass’ report blew the lid off the Tavistock’s Gender Identity Development Service, which paid little to no attention to the children’s mental health in favor of transgender medical procedures.
“When conducting the review, I found that in gender medicine those pillars are built on shaky foundations,” Dr. Cass said.
She also warned that “gender care for children and young people had moved from a ‘watchful waiting’ approach to treatment with puberty blockers.”
Subsequently, the NHS has issued a new directive requiring hospitals to screen children for other mental and developmental conditions, such as ADHD, autism, and learning disabilities, to rule out that they were the cause of gender stress. Physicians will also evaluate each child’s mental health, their family relationship history, and sexual development, including whether they are attracted to the same sex.
“Given the high prevalence of neurodiversity identified within this population, all those attending the NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Service should receive screening for neurodevelopmental conditions,” the report, seen by the Telegraph, stated.
Additionally, the NHS acknowledged the “reluctance to explore or address” mental health conditions since gender dysphoria has yet to be classified as such.
Meanwhile, children diagnosed with any of the listed conditions will be referred to neurodevelopmental pediatricians. Doctors will then determine whether the child’s symptoms were autism-related or caused by gender dysphoria. A “multidisciplinary team” will then chart the treatment path for each child depending on their diagnosis.
Children with an autism diagnosis will remain under observation for six months while receiving autism treatment to determine if they need additional therapy for gender dysphoria or be released from the system.
Between 2011 and 2021, the rates of reported gender dysphoria increased from 0.14 per 10,000 to 4.4 per 10,000, at the same time when gender identity politics became mainstream in the Western world.
Similarly, the prevalence of autism increased from 1 in 2,500 to one in 34 children by 2018, especially among teenage girls. Before the new directive, this vulnerable demographic was at risk of being misdiagnosed with gender dysphoria and subjected to irreversible chemical and surgical mutilation.
According to the NHS National Autism Unit chief, Prof. Michael Craig, half of Tavistock’s clinic patients between 2007 and 2023 had autism.
Meanwhile, the new guidance also advises doctors to analyze other issues, such as how gender dysphoria manifested, how it was managed, and “social transition.” Similarly, they will look for other “safeguarding issues” like“transphobic bullying, online grooming, and a breakdown in family relationships.
Dr. Cass also found that some “online stressors,” such as social media and pornography, likely impacted the mental health of teenage girls. Subsequently, ruling out mental health issues before recommending blanket gender realignment treatment could save many children from unnecessary and irreversible body-altering chemical and surgical mutilation.
Seemingly, the United Kingdom is making progress toward common sense, especially after the recent Supreme Court ruling that a biological male who identifies as a female is not a woman.
