Oral Presentations Abstracts: MATTER OVER MIND. WHAT SUPPORT FOR FAMILIES WITH INTERSEX CHILDREN EXIST?

Daria ABROSIMOVA; Martin GRAMC

doi:10.24193/subbbioethica.2021.spiss.05

Authors

Daria ABROSIMOVA PhD student, University of Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: daria.abrosimova@ibme.uzh.ch
Martin GRAMC PhD student, Institution name: University of Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: martin.gramc@ibme.uzh.ch

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24193/subbbioethica.2021.spiss.05

Abstract

View of Volume 66, Special Issue, September 2021

The complex treatment of intersex people in medicine has for too long neglected the support for their families. Decision-making process included parental concerns and wishes, but the emotional and peer support of families with intersex people may not always be provided. We investigate access and availability of psychological and peer support for families with intersex children.

Even though the 2005 Consensus statement on DSD strongly recommended new protocol in which families should be provided psychological and peer support during decision-making process, we claim that this is still not the case. Even if there is a psychologist or psychiatrist in the multidisciplinary team during the process, that does not mean that families are provided with psychological support.

Based on the scoping review method we want to identify existing professional-peer support and intervention tools for parents with intersex children. We investigate the implementation strategies for professional psychosocial interventions and examine the literature assessing their effectiveness.

Our claim is that psychological and peer support are not fully implemented in the treatment process of intersex people, because the role of psychologist, psychiatrist or peer groups is seen as secondary in comparison to the one on surgeons within the multidisciplinary team of medical professionals. This leads to lack of psychosocial and peer support and to mental distress of families and their intersex children.