Medical and dental care experiences among transgender people: a consensual qualitative study

Objectives: Transgender individuals, as social minorities, often face healthcare disparities and discrimination that negatively affect their health.This consensual qualitative study aimed to identify and categorize transgender people's gender identity-related experiences in medical and dental care, including perceived changes in staff attitudes, healthcare encounters, coping strategies, and perceived consequences for healthcare seeking, to advance the understanding of transgender healthcare utilization.Methods: Ten transgender adults in South Korea (six women and four men) were recruited using snowball sampling and participated in semi-structured in-depth interviews.The research team analyzed the data using a consensual qualitative research (CQR) methodology to enhance analytic credibility and reduce individual researcher bias.Results: The interview data were organized into six domains and 12 categories, with negative interactions emerging as a universal phenomenon.All participants reported negative experiences, including misgendering, derogatory remarks, and administrative systems centered on legal sex designations.These transphobic experiences were perceived to adversely affect oral and general health by prompting avoidance of healthcare visits.Consequently, such encounters were a key factor in decisions to delay future treatment or seek care exclusively from LGBT-friendly providers.Conclusions: The participants' accounts suggest that transphobic experiences in South Korean healthcare settings may arise from structural, interpersonal, and individual factors.This study provides exploratory evidence that well-intentioned behaviors may be perceived as microaggressions.Non-response to discrimination may function as an adaptive response to perceived systemic barriers.These findings suggest that negative healthcare experiences may contribute to healthcare avoidance and perceived adverse health and well-being consequences, highlighting the need for multidimensional interventions.