Eris Watson shares emotional transitioning journey in Queensland public health system
In a battle against her own body clock, a transgender woman has shared her medical journey while at the height of puberty and the ‘bigotry’ others face in regional Queensland.
A transgender woman has shared her emotional transitioning journey, in a distressing race against time as her body matured during puberty while waiting her turn in the public healthcare system.
Sunshine Coast resident Eris Watson recounted the distressing year where she watched her body undergo unwanted changes and waited months between appointments for medical treatment at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital’s Gender Service.
It is understood this clinic is the sole public provider in gender-affirming medical treatment for adults in Queensland.
Ms Watson came to realisation of her gender identity at 16 years old and with it came relief over finding an answer for her feelings, and dread for what was to come.
Approaching the age of 17, she entered the public healthcare system, starting with a GP visit to gain a referral.
She was placed at the gender service at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital rather than the Queensland Children’s Gender Service as it was expected she would turn 18 by the time she received prescriptions for hormone therapy.
Ms Watson travelled to Brisbane for in-person appointments with her parents, or attended Telehealth appointments.
She said medical professionals took much care to ensure it was the right decision for her, and thoroughly explained what would happen to her body on medication.
It took about a year for Ms Watson to complete her necessary appointments.
In this time, Ms Watson was in the height of male puberty and she felt “distressed” seeing the changes to her body, knowing her male features would have to slowly reverse through medication.
“It was quite distressing to know that I actively don’t want this (male puberty) and be at that time helpless to stop it happening,” Ms Watson said.
Now at 21 and holding a cleaning job, Ms Watson is desperately scraping together her savings for gender-affirming surgery.
Gender-affirming surgeries include vaginoplasty, also described as bottom surgery, and facial feminisation surgery.
In Queensland, patients must fund their own private surgeries.
Ms Watson had initially aimed to save up for bottom surgery, but gave up hope upon realising it could cost her up to $60,000.
Now, she is trying to save for facial feminisation surgery, for which Ms Watson was quoted $35,000 about two years ago.
Ms Watson said facial feminisation surgery was more accessible in Queensland, as there was more demand from all women for cosmetic and reconstructive work.
Organisations AusPATH and TransHealthCare list Hans Goossen as the only surgeon available in Queensland who can provide bottom surgery.
Ms Watson said the care that she received was sufficient, but what Queensland public healthcare lacks was a sufficient number of professionals across the state to provide gender-affirming care.
She counted herself lucky living on the Sunshine Coast, and said other transgender people outside South East Queensland often failed to see a doctor in fear of social backlash and “bigotry”.
“You’re scared to come out, you’re scared to tell your doctor that your trans and want to do this and that prevents a lot of people from doing it as well,” Ms Watson said.
When it came to information on gender-affirming care in Queensland, Ms Watson said it was mostly sourced through word-of-mouth in transgender communities.
She said learning how to live as a transgender person relied on talking to others, as resources “just don’t exist” outside the community.
The gender service in Brisbane provides short- to medium-term care to adults seeking support through their gender transition.
The service does not provide long-term care.
Information on the gender service page notes patients can expect to sit on a waitlist for at least 14 months and are advised their first appointment may not be with a specialist.
Ms Watson labelled hormone replacement therapy and puberty blockers as “essential, live-saving medicine”.
“They’re safe, they’re well respected within the medical community as a safe and effective treatment,” she said.
“Within the scientific and medical community, there is no debate around this. It’s just politics.”
In Queensland, children currently cannot gain access to puberty blockers as per the temporary ban imposed by the state government until an independent review is completed.
The temporary ban was first introduced in January this year.
The ban specifically regards the provision of stage one treatment and stage two treatment to new patients under the age of 18 with gender dysphoria.
Current patients are still able to access treatment.
Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls reinstated the ban using ministerial powers just hours after the Supreme Court deemed the initial ban unlawful.
Mr Nicholls was grilled over his intervention in the controversial issue and denied the state government was starting a culture war.
“We have been very, very clear and very, very respectful of the positions of people, on both sides of what is a heavily contested area,” he said.
“This is an area where people hold strong views, understandably so.”
Children under the age of 18 can still access treatment through private health, and trans health organisation AusPATH launched Project 491 in March to help families suddenly “excluded” from “time-sensitive care” through the public system.
The AusPATH Project 491 page states through donations, the organisation has helped more than 20 families in receiving care through private health.
A Queensland Health spokeswoman said the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital is the statewide provider for gender services.
“Queensland adults requiring medical or surgical gender affirming care can be referred to RBWH by Hospital and Health Services and general practitioners,” she said.
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Originally published as Eris Watson shares emotional transitioning journey in Queensland public health system
