Treating the Transgender Homeless Population: Experiences During Residency Training

Trainees in psychiatry receive little or no training in the specific mental health needs of transgender persons, even though they constitute a significant number in our population. According to estimates by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in 2007, 0.25-1% of the U.S. population is transgender. Transgender individuals are especially vulnerable to rejection by loved ones and domestic violence. They are often ostracized by society, and a significant number of transgender persons become homeless. One in five transgender persons are at risk of needing homeless shelter services. This is one article in a series in this issue of the Journal of Gay & Lesbian Mental Health documenting the proceedings from the workshop "The Psychiatric Needs of the Transgender Homeless Population" at the 2009 American Psychiatric Association's Institute on Psychiatric Services Conference in New York City. In this article, we will present three cases seen by psychiatry residents during their community psychiatry rotation in a women's drop in center in New York City.