Health Justice for LGBT Youths: Combining Public Health and Human Rights.

As a socially marginalized group, LGBT youths experience elevated rates of physical and mental health problems that are leading causes of mortality due to a variety of factors. Minority stress theory links exposure to stigma with health outcome disparities. Structural stigma including biased laws, policies, and societal norms predicts approximately 20% of elevated suicidality among LGBT youths. Comprehensive public health efforts to reduce mental health disparities among LGBT youths need to address structural stigma. An interdisciplinary Health Justice approach is described, in which public health evidence is integrated with human rights principles in keeping with the bioethical Justice Imperative. In this approach, epidemiological research is used to inform public health efforts to address health disparities in LGBT youths due to structural stigma in a way that is (1) empirical; (2) aimed at basic goals of reducing morbidity and mortality; (3) applicable to diverse cultural contexts; (4) capable of amending stigma-related power and associated health inequities; and (5) guided by human rights principles. By applying human rights principles to public health needs, this approach will help to achieve health equity for LGBT youths.

Mental Health Care for LGBT Youths.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youths comprise a diverse population with unique developmental experiences and needs. Many experience some form of anti-LGBT stigma. Although most LGBT youths cope well and are free from mental illness, they are at increased risk for a number of psychiatric and other health problems compared with the general population. These problems include depression, anxiety, suicidality, tobacco and substance use, and disordered eating. These disorders are significant sources of morbidity and mortality and are risk factors for other health problems, including HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. Preliminary evidence suggests the same is true for gender dysphoric youths. The minority stress hypothesis holds that exposure to LGBT-specific stigma causes these disparities among LGBT youth. During the past decade, increasing attention has been devoted to developing evidence-based practice guidelines to address the mental health needs of LGBT youths, with an emphasis on core clinical competencies for practitioners working with this population. This review addresses key principles for mental health promotion and care of LGBT youths. Key resources for clinicians and two clinical vignettes are included.

LGBT Youth, Mental Health, and Spiritual Care: Psychiatric Collaboration With Health Care Chaplains.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth have unique medical and mental health needs. Exposure to stigma such as family non-acceptance is associated with adverse mental health outcomes that are important sources of morbidity and mortality in this population. These include depression, anxiety, substance abuse, suicidality, and risk behaviors that mediate exposure to human immunodeficiency virus and sexually transmitted infections. Different religious and/or spiritual traditions hold various beliefs and attitudes about LGBT people. These can be a factor influencing a youth's risk of experiencing stigma. Other unique developmental challenges of LGBT youth, such as conflicts over identity integration and disclosure, also can be influenced by religious/spiritual factors. Health care chaplains could collaborate with clinicians to support mental health by helping LGBT youth and families integrate religious with other aspects of identity, decreasing religiously based stigma, and supporting family connectedness. This article discusses professional aspects of health care chaplaincy and ways in which health care chaplains can work with psychiatrists and other clinicians to support LGBT youth mental health, including case vignettes. It was developed from a conference at the Pediatric Ethics Committee of the Columbia University Medical Center addressing chaplaincy for LGBT youth.

Development and Mental Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgender Youth in Pediatric Practice.

Assessing, monitoring, and supporting children and adolescents' mental health are integral parts of comprehensive pediatric primary care. These are especially relevant for LGBT youth, who frequently experience unique stressors, often including having an identity different from family and peer expectations, whether to reveal it, and stigma like peer bullying, family rejection, social intolerance, and self nonacceptance. Pediatricians should know key mental health practice principles for LGBT youth, how to adapt these to various pediatric settings, the continuum of mental health interventions, and their local resources. Practice principles in pediatric care for LGBT youth and examples of their implementation are discussed.

Practice parameter on gay, lesbian, or bisexual sexual orientation, gender nonconformity, and gender discordance in children and adolescents.

Children and adolescents who are growing up gay, lesbian, bisexual, gender nonconforming, or gender discordant experience unique developmental challenges. They are at risk for certain mental health problems, many of which are significantly correlated with stigma and prejudice. Mental health professionals have an important role to play in fostering healthy development in this population. Influences on sexual orientation, gender nonconformity, and gender discordance, and their developmental relationships to each other, are reviewed. Practice principles and related issues of cultural competence, research needs, and ethics are discussed.

Development of AACAP practice parameters for gender nonconformity and gender discordance in children and adolescents.

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) is preparing a publication, Practice Parameter on Gay, Lesbian or Bisexual Sexual Orientation, Gender-Nonconformity, and Gender Discordance in Children and Adolescents. This article discusses the development of the part of the parameter related to gender nonconformity and gender discordance and describes the practice parameter preparation process,rationale, key scientific evidence, and methodology. Also discussed are terminology considerations, related clinical issues and practice skills, and overall organization of information including influences on gender development, gender role behavior, gender nonconformity and gender discordance, and their relationship to the development of sexual orientation.