Exploring health and social care inequities for transgender and gender diverse Autistic adults living in the UK

Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) Autistic people experience inequity in health and social care, including (but not limited to): deadnaming and misgendering, unmet communication needs, and settings being sensorially overwhelming.

To address the issues of inequity in health and social care for TGD Autistic adults, we must understand the systemic issues, which affect our ability to trust and engage in health and social care services.

This understanding shall be sought through the following research aims: (1) Collect and share stories of TGD Autistic adults and their experiences of accessing (or trying to access) health and social care in the UK, to better our understanding of inequity. (2) Gather and co-create new evidence that facilitates an understanding of how to reduce or remove barriers and inequities for TGD Autistic adults in the UK. (3) Co-create resources to share with health and social care professionals.

This study shall take an intersectional approach which decolonises neuro and gender normativity, enabling the collection and sharing of experiences which are rich in diversity and authenticity.

Through interviews, focus groups, and consistent analysis and reanalysis with participants this study shall add to the growing area of work aiming to improve health and social care for TGD Autistic adults. The findings of this study shall be strategically disseminated to create impact.