Integrated Affirmative Care for Transgender Adolescents and Emerging Adults and Their Families: A Scoping Review of Clinical and Systemic Interventions

Transgender adolescents and emerging adults often rely on family support to access, navigate, and sustain gender-affirming healthcare. Yet, families and providers must do so within fragmented healthcare systems and shifting sociopolitical conditions. We conducted a scoping review of peer-reviewed articles published between January 1, 2010, and February 19, 2026, to examine integrated, affirming care models involving transgender adolescents or emerging adults, and their families. Searches were conducted in PubMed, PsycINFO, and PsycARTICLES, and 44 articles met the inclusion criteria. Three themes emerged from the review: family involvement as a cornerstone of affirmative care, variation in integrated care implementation, and systemic and sociopolitical barriers to access. The findings suggest that family involvement can strengthen care engagement, improve communication, and support transgender youth and emerging adult mental health, while fragmented systems often place additional emotional and logistical burdens on families. Clinical implications suggest that providers should prioritize coordinated, interdisciplinary, and family-inclusive models of care that address medical, mental health, relational, and systemic needs while supporting transgender adolescents, emerging adults, and caregivers across affirming healthcare settings.