The week of March 22 through March 26 is known as LGBT Health Awareness Week. As LGBT adults report experiencing high rates of discrimination in health care settings, the American Heart Association is highlighting the unique factors affecting LGBT health and reiterates the call for policy change within health care education and clinical settings to improve LGBT cardiovascular health. Reporter Cassidy Taylor spoke with Dr. Michael Jardula, of Desert Oasis Healthcare, about the changes needed to LGBT health care.
“Regardless of your sexual orientation, we’re still patients, we’re still people. And they deserve the same respect that anyone that comes into my office gets the same degree of care, whether it be preventative or diagnostic, or curative.”
This pandemic has led to many skipping their medications and medical exams, even routine check-ups and annual physicals. But LGBTQ individuals have been delaying primary care and preventative visits long before the pandemic because there is a great fear of being treated differently. Dr. Michael Jardula says the path forward includes education.
“I think we have to be more, have more education, with regard to our health care professionals, to help identify and appreciate what lifestyle changes that had to be made for these people in terms of transgender, or even, you know, for gay or lesbian. I think what’s lacking right now is the education on health care providers, not just physicians, but all the way down through nursing staff [and] receptionist, because I have countless stories of where people have just having made it past the front desk, because of the attitude and the prejudice.”
The American Heart Association also says that health care professionals could benefit from LGBT training and licensure requirements as well as keeping gender identity information as part of electronic health records.
