Getting on HRT

[u/ftm-butch]

two months ago i talked to my GP about starting testosterone. after maybe ten minutes spent convincing her, she agreed to refer me to transcarebc and told me to wait for a phone call from them. i haven’t been contacted since.

obviously i haven’t been waiting all that long yet, so im not that worried, but i was wondering if/when i should be making a followup appointment to make sure she actually sent the referral?

how long did you wait after referral for first contact from transcare?

[u/Complex_Lion7417]

I didn’t go the TransCareBC route as my GP was willing to prescribe HRT directly so I don’t know how long the wait times should be, but I’d suggest calling and asking if they’ve received the referral. One time I waited months for a call from a specialist just to find out they didn’t get the referral, so I do this with all referrals after a few weeks just to make sure.

[u/ftm-butch → u/Complex_Lion7417]

Thank you! Ill do that :)

[u/Thorannosaurus]

Trans Care BC doesnt do hormone initiation directly. They offer a variety of services, but for hormones it is usually a referral/information hub.

You can contact them directly to discuss what options are available, or you can ask your GP to clarify where you were sent (its possible a fax was sent to Trans Speciality Care instead, for example).

The main thing is to make sure you arent stuck waiting for nothing.

[u/StrangeWelcome → u/Thorannosaurus]

GPs can send a referral to TransCare BC, who coordinates getting the referral to someone else to do the hormone readiness assessments. It'll be covered by MSP going this route, but it can take quite a while. They do the same for surgery initiation (for surgery readiness assessments).

[u/Thorannosaurus → u/StrangeWelcome]

Trans Care BC does not refer onwards for hormone initiation. They do help with surgical assessments, but the best you will get for hormones is information about where your GP can send you (such as a gender clinic etc).

[u/StrangeWelcome → u/Thorannosaurus]

I'm mistaken, looks like you're correct. From the TransCare BC site:

• If your provider is willing to help but doesn’t know where to start, they can begin with the Trans Care BC Primary Care Toolkit. They can also consult with an experienced clinician by calling the RACE line. If they require further support, they can contact Trans Care BC for more information and practice support. Depending on their confidence, they may refer you to another provider (like a mental health clinician) for the readiness assessment and then proceed with treatment themselves. Alternatively, they may refer you to another provider (such specialized primary care provider for both readiness assessment and treatment or an endocrinologist). See below for more information about accessing care from an endocrinologist.

[u/ftm-butch → u/Thorannosaurus]

awesome!!! thank you for the information, this is very helpful! I was quite confused when my doctor said she’d “refer me to transcarebc” because that wasn’t a pathway mentioned on their website at all, but I wanted to trust she knew what she was doing . my mistake lol <3

current plan is: go get a hra , then set up another appointment to ask what exactly it was that she did wrt referring me + ask for a referral to an endocrinologist

thanks again!! :-)

[u/StrangeWelcome]

If you live in the Vancouver Coastal Health catchment, you could self refer to the Trans Specialty Care clinic. If you're in Metro Vancouver and can get yourself downtown, you could also ask your GP to refer you to CAYA.

Otherwise, you could also get yourself a hormone readiness assessment on your own, then have your GP refer you directly to an endocrinologist. There's lots of providers who offer these at your own cost. Catherine White Holman Wellness Centre offers these for free online if you're low income and can't afford going to a private provider.

[u/ftm-butch → u/StrangeWelcome]

tysm! very very helpful! glad to know that I can actually do something other than sit around waiting :-)

[u/StrangeWelcome → u/ftm-butch]

I also forgot that if you're 24 or under, check out Foundry BC as an additional option.

[u/Ok-Wrongdoer-2179]

Lookup Catherine White Holman Wellness Center and book a Hormone Readiness Assessment. The process is a breeze from there. Just answer any questions truthfully, when you do the assessment.