Health status, health behaviours and healthcare access of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender populations in Turkey

Abstract

Background Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals experience many barriers to healthcare access and health disparities because of societal stigma, discrimination and homophobia by the community and healthcare providers. Therefore, this sexual minority group poses a risk for poor health status. Aims To determine the health status, health behaviours and healthcare access among LGBT individuals in Turkey. Methods The study was conducted on 140 self‐identified LGBT individuals in Turkey between 11 April and 15 July 2016 as a descriptive, electronical survey design. Data were collected by questionnaire form, developed based on the researchers’ review of the literature. Results The results of this study revealed that 65% of LGBT participants self‐reported that their mental health status was ‘poor/fair’ while 69% of participants reported that their physical health was ‘good/excellent’. Most of them had smoking (60%), using alcohol (76.3%) and did unprotected sex (55.3%) and reported disclosing their LGBT status to the healthcare provider (90.6%); 48.6% of participants thought that disclosing their LGBT status would affect their treatment. Barriers to healthcare access included disclosing LGBT status, societal stigma, negative attitude of healthcare provider, dissatisfaction with healthcare, and lack of health insurance and financial resources. Conclusions These results can assist healthcare providers, especially nurses as critical members of this group, to serve LGBT individuals satisfactorily. Besides, it is expected that these results will shed light on new research.

Nursing students' perspectives on the inclusion of course content on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender health in the nursing curriculum: A descriptive qualitative study

“…LGBT+ individuals tend to conceal their true sexual orientation/gender identity from society and healthcare providers to avoid societal stigma and negative reactions from them (Durso & Meyer, 2013;Ercan-Sahin, Aslan, & Emiro glu, 2020;Polek, Hardie, & Crowley, 2008). Because of this, it is thought that students may have expressed their anxieties about meeting these individuals for the first time.…”

“…LGBT+ individuals tend to do not access healthcare services because of the many barriers (e.g., disclosure of LGBT status, societal stigma, lack of health insurance, negative attitude of healthcare provider, and lack of financial resources) they face (Ercan-Sahin et al, 2020;Qureshi et al, 2018;Safer et al, 2016;Roberts & Fantz, 2014 (Johnson & Montgomery, 2017).…”

LGBT individuals' opinions about their health care experiences: A qualitative research study

“…Health care providers' reactions towards LGBT individuals include shame, anxiety, inappropriate behaviour, hostility, pity, considering their service as a favour, avoiding physical contact and even rejection of treating the patient (Heck et al., 2006; McCann et al., 2013). Because of these attitudes, LGBT individuals face significant barriers in access to health services such as disclosure of their sexual orientation or gender identity, fear of social stigma, negative attitudes of the health care provider and dissatisfaction with health services (Ercan Sahin et al., 2020).…”

Addressing Discrimination and Violence against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) persons from Brazil: A mobile Health intervention

“…This additional feature is key to improving SGM persons' access to healthcare services. Several studies have identi ed that SGM persons experience additional barriers to accessing healthcare when compared to the general population(Hafeez et al, 2017;Akré et al, 2021;Ercan Sahin et al, 2020). By identifying SGM-welcoming and welcoming services, the research team in partnership with the Brazilian Ministry of Health will be able to develop tailored training for services perceived as unwelcoming.Brazil is a country where at least one SGM person is murdered every day, and discrimination/violent episodes are highly underreported.…”