What is WPATH?
The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) is an inter-disciplinary professional and educational non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of transgender health care worldwide. According to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, “WPATH brings together professionals from a cross-section of fields such as medicine, psychology, social work, anthropology and others to produce a journal on transgender issues, provide web-based resources for understanding and convene conferences and communication boards exploring gender identity.”
Periodically WPATH publishes standards of care which represent a consensus among transgender affirming professionals on inclusive protocols, treatment, and management of care for individuals that experience “gender dysphoria”. The seventh and most current edition of the SOC was published in 2011. While we acknowledge that some terminology in the SOC Version 8 is out of date, it remains the most internationally recognized and accepted manual of guidelines for professionals in the health industry to improve the quality of transgender health services and care, in addition to gender transition related treatment. The WPATH Standards of Care of Version 8 is available online in 18 different languages free of charge.
“We envision a world wherein people of all gender identities and gender expressions have access to evidence-based healthcare, social services, justice and equality.”
Why does WPATH matter?
Providing accessible, affordable, and affirming mental health care services to the transgender community in Colorado is a foundational component at Umbrella Collective, a Boulder based counseling center dedicated to serving Colorado’s LGBTQ+ community. Li Brookens, founder and clinical director of the Umbrella Collective, is a WPATH GEI SOC8 Certified Member and mental health care provider of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). Li ensures that all Umbrella Collective therapists at the Boulder based LGBTQ+ counseling center receive at least five hours in WPATH standards of care training, in addition to ongoing weekly group consultation and supervision with a WPATH GEI SOC8 certified mental health professional.
