Who is Tia For? Gender Inclusivity + Our Care Model

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One of the most exciting things about Tia’s growth and evolution as a healthcare provider is that we’re continually improving, changing, assessing, and evaluating our services to make sure we’re meeting the needs of our community. We understand the deep history of healthcare in the United States as a site of exclusion, oppression, and trauma for many people, making our commitment to personalized, affirming, whole-person care all the more critical. That also means we have a responsibility to take an intersectional approach to our diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at every level of our organization, and to offer transparency about that process to our community. You’ve asked us important questions about who we serve, the line between our values and expertise, and what we’re doing to make Tia a more inclusive provider -- we’re here to provide some answers.

At Tia, we call ourselves the “modern medical home for women”. We understand that solely referencing cisgender women in the context of women’s health excludes a diverse group of transgender and gender nonbinary people who have healthcare needs and experiences that can be similar to, but also unique from, those of cisgender women.

Trans women are women, full stop. When we reference “women'' at Tia, our language is always inclusive of trans women, who face unique and disproportionate barriers to healthcare, especially if they are women of color. Trans people and nonbinary individuals are welcome and celebrated at Tia, and are active members of the Tia patient community today.

As a Tia member, your gender identity will be affirmed and respected. Before you ever meet with one of our providers, you’ll fill out a detailed health record form that will tell us important details about your identity, including your gender, pronouns, and sexual orientation, so we can ensure that we are referring to you correctly and asking appropriate questions about your health and life experiences. More than 7% of Tia patients use a pronoun other than she/her and identify across the gender spectrum. Where appropriate, we provide our patients clinical context as to why it's important for a provider to understand this information; it’s core to our care philosophy, specifically, our commitment to personalized care and treating the person, not (just) the patient. We recognize the multitude of ways that a patient’s lived experience influences their health and access to care: clinically, psychosocially, and experientially. All Tia providers undergo training on inclusive care as well as inclusive language, protocols, and the individualized, connected model of Tia care that centers our patients and gives you full agency over your health care.

While our community is explicitly open and welcoming to people of all genders, we have a duty to be transparent that we are not a center of excellence for every person across the gender spectrum at this time. Tia offers a range of services from primary care to acupuncture to gynecology and mental health, which are currently utilized by trans and nonbinary patients. We provide primary care services for cis, trans and nonbinary patients (ranging from blood pressure management to acute injury or illnesses) and at this time work with our community specialist partners who provide gender affirming hormone therapy and surgical services. While we do not currently offer these specific services that we know are critical to the trans community, you still have a place at Tia. If you are a Tia member in need of a service that we do not offer, we will work with you one on one to refer you to the high-quality, trusted care you require to live healthily and as your authentic self.

As a healthcare provider, Tia is committed to growing and evolving, always keeping diversity, equity, and inclusion at the heart of our mission. As we look forward to our future, we commit to gender inclusivity in the following ways at this moment:

• Creation of a Tia DEI Advisory Council made up of experts and members to strategize and guide us in becoming a more inclusive health care providers
• Engaging an experienced LGBTQ+ consultant, Shane Snowdon, to ensure our organization and environment of care (for both employees and patients) supports the health of people of all gender identities and sexual orientations
• Continued education for staff and providers on issues in LGBTQ+ health
• Community events that specifically speak to the experiences and needs of LGBTQ+ members
• Building more partnerships with LGBTQ+ institutions, influencers, and health experts / educators
• Expansion of the language we use with regard to gender in our clinic experience and communications
• Increasing representation of LGBTQ+ people on the Tia Care Team and our staff as a whole
• Providing a listening ear to our community and an open door policy for feedback and ideas for our growth. Reach out at sayhello@asktia.com.

At Tia, we understand that the journey of growth and change can be messy and difficult. We know there may be stumbling blocks or mistakes ahead, and we thank our community for holding us accountable and being a partner in our evolution. Learning is never over, and we’re committed to the process. Our services and care model can grow and change in the future, and we are open to so many possibilities. We welcome your ideas, questions, and stories of your successes and challenges at every step.