Gender Plus hosts 11th BAGIS conference in Leeds

This month the Gender Plus team was proud to host the 11th conference of the British Association of Gender Identity Specialists (BAGIS) in Leeds.

Clinicians travelled from across the UK and Ireland to attend, from disciplines including medicine, surgery, psychology, psychiatry, and speech and language therapy. It isn't often that so many specialisms end up in the same room, and the conversations between sessions were as useful as the sessions themselves.

Our two directors opened the day. Consultant clinical psychologist Dr Claudia Zitz, director of Gender Plus, and nurse consultant Paul Carruthers, director of the Gender Plus Hormone Clinic, talked about our work and how the organisation has grown over the past 12 months, including the opening of new satellite clinics in Cork, Bristol and Newcastle.

Advanced clinical nurse specialist Poppy-Jo Satchell did a wonderful job of introducing presenters throughout the conference and keeping things on schedule.

Systemic family psychotherapist Sarah Favier, together with pathways co-ordinator and research assistant, Laura Johnson, led a session on running a group for parents and carers of trans and gender diverse young adults. It was a vibrant interactive session, and we've had lots of positive feedback since. There's clearly a real appetite for practical ways to support families.

Gender Plus CEO Dr Aidan Kelly, who also attended, said: "These are challenging times for clinicians working to deliver the best outcomes for the transgender community, which is why days like this matter so much. It was a real privilege to host so many colleagues who share the same commitment, and we've come away energised for the work ahead."

About BAGIS: the British Association of Gender Identity Specialists was founded in 2014 to promote clinical research and the exchange of knowledge on gender dysphoria and transgender health.