District Panchayat In Ernakulam Will Establish Clinic For The Transgender Community

The transgender community will soon get a dedicated clinic in the Ernakulam district. It is said to be the first such clinic launched by a district panchayat in the state and was an initiative of the Ernakulam District Panchayat. The decision was made in response to a study that transgender people are still hesitant to receive medical treatment in hospitals.

Ullas Thomas, district panchayat president explained that although society is more accepting of the transgender community, many of them still hesitate to seek treatment in hospitals. By establishing a dedicated clinic for transgender people, the Ernakulam district panchayat hopes to transform the situation for those who find it difficult to integrate into society.

This initiative has never before been proposed by a district panchayat. Additionally, the panchayat wants to distinguish the clinic by employing only transgender persons.

Ullas stated that they have already begun speaking with the specialists about turning the clinic into a transgender-only facility. They will turn it into a full-service transgender clinic if there are physicians and other medical personnel among the transgender community.

The initiative will be carried out by the district panchayat with assistance from NGOs and the Social Justice Department, for which Rs 20 lakh has been allocated. Doctors, nurses, and counsellors will be on staff at the clinic, which will be located in the centre of the city. They have already requested interest statements from state-based NGOs.

In the meantime, the panchayat is preparing more amenities for the impending clinic by offering sex-change surgery.