Transgender Care: Recommended Guidelines, Practical Information, and Personal Accounts [Paperback]

Gianna E. Israel (Author), Donald E. Tarver (Author), Diane Shaffer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1998

By empowering clients to be well-informed medical consumers and by delivering care providers from the straitjacket of inadequate diagnostic standards and stereotypes, this book sets out to transform the nature of transgender care. In an accessible style, the authors discuss the key mental health issues, with much attention to the vexed relationship between professionals and clients. They propose a new professional role; that of "Gender Specialist." Chapters 3, 4, and 5 provide definitive information (in the context of consulting health professionals) on hormone administration, aesthetic surgery, and genital reassignment surgery. Chapter 6 takes up the little-examined issue of HIV and AIDS among transgender people. There is also a chapter devoted to issues of transgender people of color, as well as a chapter on transgender adolescents. The book contains a wealth of practical information and accounts of people's experiences about coming out to one's employer or to one's friends or spouse. Several essays spell out the legal rights of transgender people with regard to insurance, work, marriage, and the use of rest rooms. The second part of the book consists of thirteen essays on a range of controversial topics. They include three personal stories of transgender life, one essay on the new academic field of "Transgender Studies", two essays on legal rights, three essays on medical issues, and two essays on the origins and possible resolution of the conflicts between therapist and client. The authors have also provided useful listings of organizations, centers, and Web sites. The book has been reviewed by a national committee of professionals and consumers, some of whose members have contributed the essays in the second part of the book. Author note: Gianna E. Israel has been in private practice as a Gender Specialist since 1988. She has worked with over one thousand transgendered men and women, and is also a member of the transgender community. She is a founding member of the board of the American Education Gender Information Service (AEGIS). Donald E. Tarver II, M.D., is a San Francisco psychiatrist working in public mental health and a private practice. He is Medical Director of New Leaf - a multiservice agency serving the mental health, substance abuse recovery, HIV/AIDS, and social service needs of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communitites.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The title tells pretty much what this groundbreaking anthology offers: a comprehensive distillation of personal experiences and professional wisdom." - Feminist Bookstore News "Professionals who work with individuals with gender identity issues and those with gender issues themselves have long needed a comprehensive guide to treatment. Finally, it is here. Gianna Israel and Donald Tarver have done a wonderful job of putting resource material from many fields into one easy to use reference book. Transgender Care is without a doubt a breakthrough work, as it addresses issues of cultural diversity, sexual orientation, and lifestyle that have been previously overlooked or ignored in the clinical literature. The supporting essays provide practical information about employment and insurance and confront the ethical difficulties of professionals who serve as gatekeepers to those who desire treatment. The authors have done a service to caregivers and transfolk alike with this monumental work." - Dallas Denney, M.A., Licensed Psychological Examiner, Executive Director, American Education Gender Information Service, Inc. "This wonderful book...is a comprehensive resource." - Archives of Sexual Behavior

From the Publisher

An outstanding reference work by specialists for the transgendered --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Temple University Press; 1 edition (January 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566398525
• ISBN-13: 978-1566398527
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #194,693 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #50 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > Nonfiction > Transgender

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent overview, not for novices, April 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Transgender Care (Hardcover)

A great overview of current care standards and practices. Also includes some personal narratives. Directed to professionals in the health and therapeutic fields, but clear and readable by non-professionals, including patients, family and friends. Probably more useful if reader already has some familiarity with the field.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Transgender Care, December 31, 2007

By 

JRK (Phoenix, AZ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Transgender Care: Recommended Guidelines, Practical Information, and Personal Accounts (Paperback)

Transgender Care: Recommended Guidelines, Practical Information, and Personal Accounts

Transgender Care was published in 1997. Although it is 10 years old, I found it an invaluable resource on topics relating to Gender Identity Disorder (GID), and topics ranging from cross-dressing to Genital Reassignment Surgery. Subjects range from causes through support services to healthcare. Other topics include descriptions of hormone treatments and surgical options.

This book does not claim to provide in-depth information on any particular aspect of being transgender. Rather, it is an excellent overview of what GID is and how it affects individuals and how it can be dealt with.

To date, this is one of the few references I've found that provides factual information and resources relating to GID.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is transgendered or for the families of the transgendered.

19 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Basic Self-Contradiction, September 5, 2001

By 

C. Jacob Hale (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Transgender Care: Recommended Guidelines, Practical Information, and Personal Accounts (Paperback)

Israel and Tarver write that they respect the self-determination of transgendered people, yet they propose guidelines that leave decisions about transgendered people's bodies, ultimately, in the hands of mental health professionals. The authors do not address this basic self-contradiction. To their credit, the authors also include essays by other writers, some of whom contest this autonomy-denying aspect of their proposed guidelines.