Have you ever moved to a new town and then needed to find a healthcare professional? It's a pain when it's easy, and worse when it's not. As someone who has moved multiple times in their life, I've had to work through this process for a variety of health conditions. But what do you do when you'd like to find a healthcare provider informed and better able to relate to your sexual orientation?
Happy Tuesday, friends. Many long-time readers of my blog might or might not be familiar with my Links of Interest page. Over the years I've shared authors I enjoy, fun websites, and a variety of links that have helped impact my life. I spent the tail end of 2021 cleaning up my blog pages and refreshing my links, and I'd like to share some of them with you in the year ahead.
Back in what used to be dinosaur years (a/k/a before internet), as a person of non-heterosexual orientation, when I moved to a new area there was a process involved if I wanted to find a healthcare provider informed in my area of orientation. Could I choose not to find such a provider? Sure. Human bodies are human bodies, and work the same despite who we share them with. I certainly have many friends who will only see a provider of their own gender regardless of their orientation. Many times, depending on the area I moved to, I was simply grateful to find someone who took my insurance. But, being part of a community usually leads to a desire to support others in that community.
And, sometimes, especially in areas of physical and mental health, it's helpful not to have to hide who we are from those involved in our care. Even in the 90s when I started a new relationship and went for HIV/Aids and other testing as I shared in the dedication of my short story, Better with Sprinkles, I did so through anonymous health departments rather than have any indication of such testing show up on my insurance or medical records.
It's very pleasing to me now to know there are those who might read this post and have absolutely no understanding of what I'm writing about. Progress. Even in small areas, is great progress.
But back to dinosaur years. I had a strategy in each new town. It usually involved finding the local gathering place of like-minded individuals (back then, it was usually a bar), getting to know the people there, and then asking for recommendations. In the last several years I've been pleased to find more community outreach centers sharing such information rather than bars, but in many places, bars were, and still are, the community outreach center.
With this bit of backstory you can imagine how thrilled I was when I poked around the internet and came across the GLMA. What are they? Here's a bit of info from their website:
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ Equality (previously known as the Gay & Lesbian Medical Association) is the world's largest and oldest association of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) healthcare professionals. GLMA was founded in 1981, as the American Association of Physicians for Human Rights, with the mission of ensuring equality in healthcare for LGBTQ individuals and healthcare professionals.
Progress, my friends. Progress.
If you aren't familiar with the organization or their website, I urge you to spend some time clicking through. Pay special attention to their "Find a Provider near me" page, where you can put in your zip code and find (within a specific mile radius) a healthcare provider you might be interested in. The service is free and you do not have to register. The site is sometimes a little slow and sometimes a little clunky, and not nearly as comprehensive in their list of providers as a gal might like, but I'm still in awe every time I visit and with a keystroke, can find the information I need.
How about you? Have you done the find a new provider dance after a move? Have you ever thought of what it might be like for someone of a different orientation or have you lived through the experience yourself? Send me an email if you are uncomfortable sharing on a post, I'd love to chat with you.
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