ESPE Abstracts

In recent years we have witnessed an increase in the demand for health care by minors with gender diversity. Comprehensive biopsychosocial care for these individuals is a complex process, which must be facilitated for all of them.

Objective: The survey strategy aimed at primary care pediatricians aims to provide the starting point for proposals for improvement, in response to the needs expressed by professionals. It is also intended to contribute to raising awareness among professionals with responsibility for the care of trans children and adolescents.

Material and Methods: Anonymous and voluntary survey carried out in googleforms, distributed through the Spanish Association of Pediatrics to its members; with closed multiple-choice questions with a Likert-type scale aimed at finding out sociodemographic data and the attitudes and experience of pediatricians in the care of children with GD.

Results: A total of 483 pediatricians responded (82 % women), and 53 % with more than 20 years of professional practice. The majority (78 %) had contact with children with GD in their practice. 36% consider that there is an increase in cases of adolescent onset and rapid progression. One out of 4 pediatricians found the treatment complicated. Only 23% knew where to refer these minors. 36% percent said that this contact at the consultation facilitated a better understanding of these children and their families. Accompaniment during the social transition was easy for 13%, compared with 8% who considered it complicated. Regarding the possible resources for referral, 82% would refer to the referral units, 39% to the psychologist, 37% to specific associations and 29.6% to the child endocrinologist. One in 5 did not know if there was a referral unit in their Autonomous Community. Most of those surveyed consider these four professionals to be basic: psychologist, pediatrician, school counselor and social worker. 88% of primary care pediatricians would not prescribe blockers at the request of the child or his/her legal guardians. The majority of pediatricians (88 %) consider that more training is needed for more fluid communication and better counseling of these minors and their families.

Conclusions: The attitude of primary care pediatricians is mostly supportive of the family from a prudent point of view. There is a need to improve training in order to provide quality support. Unnecessary suffering should be avoided in pediatric consultations, which is intolerable from an ethical point of view, especially considering the presence of situations of special vulnerability.