Puberty blockers: Under-16s ‘unlikely’ to be able to give informed consent
BBC News 2 December 2020
Family First Comment: Here’s a significant court case that the NZ media won’t tell you about.
But we will….
“It is doubtful that a child aged 14 or 15 could understand and weigh the long-term risks and consequences of the administration of puberty blockers.”
“She said it was “frightening” there was so little exploration of why a child might be feeling they were the wrong sex before puberty blockers were given.”
Time to stop this ‘experiment’ in New Zealand also.
Children under 16 with gender dysphoria are unlikely to be able to give informed consent to undergo treatment with puberty-blocking drugs, three High Court judges have ruled.
The case was brought against Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust, which said it was “disappointed” but immediately suspended such referrals for under-16s.
The NHS said it “welcomed the clarity” the ruling would bring.
One of the claimants, Keira Bell, said she was “delighted” by the judgment.
Ms Bell, 23, from Cambridge, had been referred to the Tavistock Centre, which runs the UK’s only gender-identity development service (GIDS), as a teenager and was prescribed puberty blockers aged 16.
She argued the clinic should have challenged her more over her decision to transition to a male as a teenager.
In a ruling, Dame Victoria Sharp, sitting with Lord Justice Lewis and Mrs Justice Lieven, said: “It is highly unlikely that a child aged 13 or under would be competent to give consent to the administration of puberty blockers.
“It is doubtful that a child aged 14 or 15 could understand and weigh the long-term risks and consequences of the administration of puberty blockers.”
They added: “In respect of young persons aged 16 and over, the legal position is that there is a presumption that they have the ability to consent to medical treatment.
“Given the long-term consequences of the clinical interventions at issue in this case, and given that the treatment is as yet innovative and experimental, we recognise that clinicians may well regard these as cases where the authorisation of the court should be sought prior to commencing the clinical treatment.”
The second claimant, known only as Mrs A, is the mother of a 15-year-old girl with autism, who is awaiting treatment at the clinic.
Speaking to the BBC prior to Tuesday’s ruling, she said: “My fear is – it’s not that she transitions – it’s that she gets it wrong.”
She said it was “frightening” there was so little exploration of why a child might be feeling they were the wrong sex before puberty blockers were given.
“It is distressing to have to wait and to try and convince someone that your identity warrants medical intervention. However, I think the downside of getting it wrong, the outcomes of getting it wrong, are also catastrophic.”
At a High Court hearing in October, lawyers representing the claimants said there was “a very high likelihood” children who start taking hormone blockers will later begin taking cross-sex hormones, which they say cause “irreversible changes”.
The trust – as well as University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust, to which Tavistock refers children and young people experiencing gender dysphoria – argued taking puberty blockers and later cross-sex hormones were entirely separate stages of treatment.
Growing up, Keira Bell felt confused and distressed by her body.
At 16, she became one of thousands of girls, some as young as 10 or 11, referred to the Tavistock and Portman Trust.
After three one-hour appointments she was prescribed puberty blockers before she was put on testosterone.
“When I was 20 I had a double mastectomy,” she said.
She believed the treatment would help her “achieve happiness”.
Ms Bell, who began de-transitioning last year, said: “It was heartbreaking to realise I’d gone down the wrong path.”
READ MORE: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-55144148
Keira Bell: The High Court hands down a historic judgment to protect vulnerable children
Transgender Trend 1 December 2020
In a landmark judgment that will have repercussions around the world the High Court today ruled that puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones are experimental treatments which cannot be given to children in most cases without application to the court.
We are delighted that the High Court has handed down judgment to protect children from experimental medical interventions with serious known and unknown risks and lifelong consequences.
The judgment concluded that it is highly unlikely that a child aged 13 or under would ever be Gillick competent to give consent to being treated with puberty blockers and very doubtful that children aged 14 and 15 could understand the long-term risks and consequences of treatment in such a way as to have sufficient understanding to give consent.
The court also ruled that it would be appropriate for clinicians to involve the court in any case where there may be any doubt as to whether the long-term interests of a 16 or 17 year-old would be served by the clinical interventions of blockers and hormones.
The judgment is vindication for Sue Evans who instigated the case and first raised concerns at the GIDS over fifteen years ago. It is testament to the courage of the claimants, Mrs A and Keira Bell who, through her public testimony, has changed history.
In her witness statement, Keira Bell said
“I made a brash decision as a teenager, (as a lot of teenagers do) trying to find confidence and happiness, except now the rest of my life will be negatively affected.”
Through her court action, Keira Bell has ensured that other troubled teenagers will now be protected from the harmful consequences she has had to face.
READ MORE: https://www.transgendertrend.com/keira-bell-high-court-historic-judgment-protect-vulnerable-children/
