Nurses' Knowledge About Transgender Patient Care: A Qualitative Study.

ABSTRACT

This study explored practicing nurses' knowledge of the needs of transgender patients. Structured interviews were conducted with 268 nurses in the San Francisco Bay Area. This study focused on the responses to 1 item in the 16-item interview, "Describe health care issues that are particular to transgender patients." Three themes emerged from the data discomfort, transition, and harsh consequences of being transgender. These findings revealed nurses' discomfort and lack of knowledge about transgender people and their health care needs. Nursing curricula must challenge the gender binary to better prepare nurses to provide quality care for patients of all genders.