My first introduction to the ICTA project was at my interview for the job of research fellow. As the last person to join the team most of my now colleagues were present for my interview, and I could tell from the start that something special was happening here. Of course I was already excited about the project from the job description, but when I got in that interview room and everyone introduced themselves with their name AND pronouns, I was sold. This simple act, one that I hope to someday take for granted, made me feel seen and safe in a way I have never felt in a work setting before. I wasn’t even the only person there who uses they/them pronouns. I wish I could describe to you the sense of relief, the full body exhale that happens when you realize that for this one rare occasion you won’t have to explain yourself or justify your existence. I could come into that space fully as myself which, for me at least, is rare enough in everyday life and even more so in a work context.
Once I joined the team, I got to work on the survey which was my main focus for my first six months at the OU. This involved seemingly endless drafts and redrafts, community piloting, and a whole lot of troubleshooting and in the end, I am incredibly proud of what we have put out. It was particularly important to us that, in addition to asking about transition-related healthcare, we leave space for participants to talk about other forms of healthcare. After all we are not only trans at the gender clinic, we are also trans at the GP, in A&E, at the podiatrist, etc. We will also be giving participants the opportunity to tell us about their experiences with about other aspects of healthcare, such as primary care, interactions with third sector organizations, and sexual health services, in the interviews.
Our initial goal with the survey was to reach 500 respondents over the several months the survey would be live which at the time, to be honest, I didn’t think was realistic. We hit our 500th response on day six. As I am writing we have 1011 responses and 453 of those people have agreed to be interviewed. Suffice to say we are all blown away. This is truly a testament to the hard work of the research team and the strong community support we have received.
While the response has been overwhelming, this does not in any way mean that we are done with the survey. The majority of respondents so far have been young and white which of course does not reflect the diversity of trans communities. Factors like age, race, and migrant status will impact someone’s healthcare encounters so it is important that we have a diverse sample so we can capture a fuller range of experiences. Our focus now is on recruiting people from the most underrepresented groups which are currently BAME people/POC, older people (especially 70+ year olds), people living in Northern Ireland, and those with a religious affiliation. If any of these describe you and you are able to fill out our survey, we would very much appreciate it. If you are up for a longer form interview, you can enter your contact details at the end of the survey and we will be in touch. This project would greatly benefit from your voice and your story. With more perspectives we can amplify underrepresented trans voices and ensure that any outputs and recommendations that come from this research will benefit as many people as possible.
Thank you to everyone who has helped our project in any way, from sitting down with one of us for a couple hours to tell your story to retweeting our flyer, it all helps. I am unbelievably grateful to get to work on this project, it is truly my dream job and it would not be possible without all of you.