State government pauses hormone treatment to new patients under 18 after gender clinic bombshell

The Health Minister has confirmed hormone therapies would be paused for new public patients under 18 at Queensland Health facilities, and revealed the scope of the “rogue” gender clinic scandal.

Brisbane, 16 January 2025. Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls during a press conference in Brisbane. Picture: Supplied

Stage one and two hormone therapies will be immediately paused for new public patients under 18 at Queensland Health facilities while a review is conducted, the Health Minister has confirmed.

For at least five years, Queensland children as young as 12 have been prescribed puberty blockers and gender affirming hormones without proper medical support and parental consent.

The Crisafulli Government has been rocked by explosive claims that rogue gender services have been operating in Cairns, with Queensland Health now launching an independent inquiry.

“The Cairns Sexual Health Service delivered an apparently unauthorised pediatric gender service without an agreed model of care to 42 pediatric gender service clients, 17 of whom were prescribed stage one or stage two hormone therapy in a way that may not align with treatment guidelines,” Health Minister Tim Nicholls said.

On Tuesday, Mr Nicholls said stage one and stage two hormone therapies would be immediately paused for new public patients under the age of 18 at Queensland Health facilities while a review was conducted.

He said existing children patients would exempt from the ban following medical advice that this was the appropriate decision for the government to make.

“The pause will remain in effect until such time as the government considers and acts on the outcomes of the broader review,” he said.

Puberty blockers stop physiological changes to the body that do not fit a child’s gender identity, while the hormones go a step further and allow children to change physically and go through puberty with the gender they identify as.

Mr Nicholls said the Cairns Sexual Health Service appeared to have delivered the authorised treatments for at least five years.

The Cairns North Community Health facility.

He said this was “unacceptable” because of issues of proper consent and whether those administrating it had the skills to do so.

He said a health service investigation into clinical governance issues in Cairns would identify how and why this had been happening, the extent of who had been involved with the delivery, and whether the affected children had received the appropriate treatment.

“It seems to be going on for a considerable period of time,” Mr Nicholls said.

“So the Cairns Sexual Health Service is remote from the hospital, it’s further in North Cairns, and it appears to have been operated without oversight from the health and hospital service.”

He said there would also be a broader review for evidence of Stage 1 and Stage 2 children’s hormone therapies, with a written report to be given to the state government within 10 months of a reviewer being appointed.

Mr Nicholls said the Queensland wide review and its terms of reference would be independent from the Department of Health.

It would involve consultation with endocrinologists, psychiatrists, scientists, as well as patients and their families who could express their lived experiences with the treatments.

Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls.

The Courier-Mail can also reveal that at the same time concerns were first raised in May 2024 about the clinic operating out of its scope, an independent review into Queensland Children’s Gender Service was underway.

When the findings of this review were released in July 2024, former Health Minister Shannon Fentiman, touted the state’s pediatric gender services as providing safe, evidence-based care that was consistent with national and international guidelines.

“I welcome the findings of this report, which shows, based on the best available evidence, that our Queensland Children’s Gender Service is considered one of the best in the country,” she said at the time.

There was no mention of the Cairns Sexual Health Service in the report.

It is understood the alarm was raised about Cairns services by a whistleblowing health worker who lodged a public interest disclosure when they came into contact with a 12-year-old patient from the Cairns Sexual Health Service, who was prescribed puberty blockers without the required consultations with psychiatrists, psychologists, endocrinologists, fertility specialists, paediatricians, social workers and GPs.

These protocols are a must for children 14 years and under.

This ignited an internal review of the service in late 2024 which found that patients were receiving care which was not backed by the required experience and credentials and did not adhere to the Australian Standards of Care and Treatment Guidelines for Trans and Gender Diverse Children and Adolescents.

It also revealed a lack of documented patient and parental consent.

As of November last year any further intake of under 18s to the Cairns Sexual Health service was suspended.

The government has now initiated a Part 6 independent clinical review to dig deeper into the Cairns services.

It is unclear if other pediatric gender services across the state will also be investigated.

Pediatric gender services have been delivered in Cairns in various forms for the past 13 years but demand has grown over the past five years.

Explosive claims that kids in north Queensland have been given gender blockers without permission.

The “comprehensive evaluation report” from Ms Fentiman’s review into the state’s gender services included 25 recommendations, wholly accepted by the government, to improve the quality of the service.

The recommendations included hiring more staff and building a statewide network of gender service providers.

The report found there were “inconsistent services and standards” for the delivery of gender services across Queensland, particularly regarding age limits accessing medical and mental health services.

It also listed a shortage of psychiatrists and “limited visibility” across various service providers as challenges.

Earlier this month Mr Nicholls said that the government would seriously consider whether it implemented the 25 recommendations in the review.

Prior to the election, Premier David Crisafulli said that Queensland was taking a “vastly different approach” compared to the rest of the world when it came to gender.

Former health minister Shannon Fentiman. Picture: Richard Walker

The LNP last year voted to ban puberty blockers at its annual national party conference.

Gender services were thrust into the spotlight when Queensland Children’s Hospital senior child psychiatrist Jillian Spencer was suspended over her approach to transgender patients, said she had seen children with complex backgrounds being considered suitable by the clinic for puberty blockers and cross sex hormones.

A fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists has called on the government to reinstate Dr Spencer.

Last year the British National Health Service (NHS) banned puberty blockers for children and the ruling has stirred up fierce debate across the world over their use.

Fears of serious impacts on fertility and sexual function persist.

In 2023, Queensland’s Children Gender Clinic treated 899 patients and issued 172 puberty blocker prescriptions.

Originally published as State government pauses hormone treatment to new patients under 18 after gender clinic bombshell