A Very Good Place To Start | LGBTQ+OT

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Connecting occupational therapy practitioners, educators, and students with the information and resources that they need to help lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning clients live life to the fullest

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What does LGBTQ+ mean?

What is cultural awareness?

What is LGBTQ+ cultural awareness?

Why is LGBTQ+ cultural awareness important?

What Does LGBTQ+ Mean?
- LGBTQ+ stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning. The + symbol is intended to include additional identities that belong in this community but are not directly referred to within this acronym.
- Other names for this community include
  - LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender)
  - GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender)
  - LGBTQIA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual)
  - GSM (gender and sexual minorities) (33)
  - DSG (diverse sexualities and genders) (33)
  - MOGII (marginalized orientations, gender identities, and intersex) (34)
  - LGBTQQIP2S (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, pansexual, Two-Spirit) (35)
  - And more
- There are many names for this community because we face the challenge of creating a name that encompasses many diverse identities and experiences. The many different names of this community represent a continuous attempt at universal design—and occupational therapy practitioners know that universal design is not always easily achieved.

What Is Cultural Awareness?
- Respecting the values, perceptions, experiences, and lifestyles of others.
- Using verbal and non-verbal communication that conveys respect from the perspective of the person that you are addressing.
- Using inclusive language without making assumptions about the lives, experiences, and relationships of others.
- Familiarity with fundamental concepts that define a population that you work with.
- Recognizing that every person, family, city, country, and socially defined group or demographic has cultural norms and expectations.
- Related concepts include cultural competence and cultural humility.

Why Is LGBTQ+ Cultural Awareness Important?
- One of the factors contributing to LGBTQ+ health and healthcare disparities is a widespread lack of LGBTQ+ cultural awareness education among healthcare practitioners. (18, 20-22)
- Cultural awareness is an important part of therapeutic use of self, which is an important part of treatment. (32)
- LGBTQ+ cultural awareness education can improve communication on LGBTQ+ topics.
  - Many people feel that they don’t know what words to use when discussing LGBTQ+ topics or people—and, in an effort to avoid offending others, tiptoe around these conversations or avoid them altogether. However, avoiding discussions about these topics contributes to a widespread lack of understanding and can discourage open communication between practitioners and LGBTQ+ clients.

These videos demonstrate potential consequences of a lack of LGBTQ+ cultural awareness:

This Website Includes:
- Information on LGBTQ+ health disparities and how they relate to LGBTQ+ cultural awareness.
- Online and in-person resources for improving LGBTQ+ cultural awareness, including terminology guides and educational trainings.
- Information on how LGBTQ+ identities can impact health in areas that overlap with occupational therapy scope of practice (here and here).
- Resources specifically for occupational therapy practitioners, educators, and students, including:

This page last updated: 2018

What Is LGBTQ+ Cultural Awareness?
- Understanding and using terminology that carries connotations of respect, understanding, and acceptance.
- Actively demonstrating safety and providing welcoming environments for LGBTQ+ clients.
  - The LGBTQ+ community is the most common target of hate crimes in the United States. (5) Many LGBTQ+ people are constantly looking for signs of safety or lack thereof, including in healthcare settings. Culturally aware interpersonal interactions and LGBTQ+-friendly clinical environments are important signals of safety for LGBTQ+ individuals. Click here for more information.
- Knowing the correct name and pronouns to use for transgender clients, which may be different from a client’s legal name and sex.
- Including transgender people in the correct spaces if dividing clients by gender in therapy groups or hospital rooms.
- Understanding how gender identity and sexual orientation can impact health and healthcare needs. Click here for more information.
- Being inclusive of all family structures.
- Respecting that sexual orientation and gender identity are important aspects of who a person is, while recognizing that these are only parts of a whole person.

What does LGBTQ+ mean?

What is cultural awareness?

What is LGBTQ+ cultural awareness?

Why is LGBTQ+ cultural awareness important?

This website incudes

"Vanessa Goes To the Doctor"

Created by the National LGBT Cancer Network

"Care to the Trans* and Gender Non-Conforming Identified Patient"

Created by the Montgomery College Department of Nursing

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