• Sweden edition

Swedish docs deny transsexual's boob job

Published: 18 Jan 12 12:51 CET | Double click on a word to get a translation
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/38572/20120118/

A Swedish transsexual has reported three plastic surgery clinics to Sweden's Equality Ombudsman (DiskrimineringsombudsmannenDO) after repeatedly being turned down for breast implant surgery.

”The whole thing was both offensive and discriminating. I felt very sad,” the woman wrote in her complaint, according to local paper Skånska Dagbladet.

The woman has been receiving hormone treatments for three years and has undergone a sex change operation from man to woman, at her own expense, abroad.

She was also willing to finance her own breast surgery and contacted a private plastic surgery clinic in Malmö in January last year.

However, due to illness, she was forced to cancel and it was when she tried to rebook her appointment that she ran into trouble.

The woman told Skånskan that the doctor in charge was unwilling to do the operation as "he doesn't operate on transsexuals".

The doctor had reportedly also said that the woman seemed not to be sure about the surgery, considering she had cancelled the previous appointment.

Despite trying to reschedule, the woman could not get a new appointment.

She then turned to a clinic in her home town. After attending a consultation with a doctor and getting an operation date, she was contacted by a clinic nurse, telling her the procedure was off.

She was told that the reason for the cancellation was that she is a transsexual, according to the paper.

After the woman received the same answer at another clinic, she decided to report all three to the watchdog.

”If there is any group who should get to have the operation it is the transsexuals, who are so incredibly grateful and completely secure in their bodies and their genders,” the woman wrote.

The woman has previously reported the local county council, responsible for medical decisions, when she was denied hair removal treatment, according to Skånskan.

The Local/rm (news@thelocal.se)

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13:20 January 18, 2012 by caradoc
Why does the private doctor refuse to operate on Transsexuals ?

And then another "proffesional" refuses also.

More and more control of peoples lives.

She was willing to pay, she should take her money elsewhere. Some country where freedom and choice of lifestyle are valued
13:59 January 18, 2012 by babashki
because they are an abomination
14:06 January 18, 2012 by caradoc
@ babashki

an abomination to who?

To you or to some belief system that you hold to fast to?
14:41 January 18, 2012 by naimad
More and more people want to control lives of others.. Let people be for gods sake.. how are they hurting others in any way?
14:54 January 18, 2012 by Coaxen
@ babashki:

The abomination is YOU. People who want to ban everything just because they feel entitled to.
15:04 January 18, 2012 by babashki
There is a man and there is a women.

If a man likes a man or a women likes a women thats fine, people are entitled to that freedom. Personal opinion here is irrelevant.

I am not commenting about people that have genital defects, they are born with it.

However changing your sex, that is too much perverseness.
15:43 January 18, 2012 by Svensksmith
Who are you to judge? That's God's job.
16:03 January 18, 2012 by Reason abd Realism
Clearly the taxes in Sweden are too high. In a wild west capitalistic environment, any of these doctors would have snapped up the opportunity for extra revenue. At the super high marginal tax rates that Swedish doctors pay, they start playing God about who gets what treatment.
16:14 January 18, 2012 by lilsocks
@ reason abd realism....

Boob jobs are NOT a treatment, merely a cosmetic proceedure.

And fair play to the doctors for standing up for their own morals.
16:34 January 18, 2012 by Grindsprint
@caradoc, those doctors where private practitioners, so how is it "controling peoples lives" when they chose who to operate on? making them do it would truly be controling of lives. And there is peobably more to the story. I´m willing to bet there are responsibilities put on doctors that makes them reluctant to operate on some individuals, like naking sure that a procedure like this is well thought thru and that the patient is sane. having un-booked the appointment might be enough to make the doctor nervous to perform the operation. Can´t make him do it
16:39 January 18, 2012 by Vill
My girlfriends must be born with their own gumbo pot and milk bags. Perhaps I am just old fashioned..........................
17:03 January 18, 2012 by Reason abd Realism
@ Grindsprint

Agree that there may be some uncertainty, but presumably the patient had a chance to clear this up.

@ lilsocks

Is it still appropriate of these doctors to refuse this cosmetic completion of the transgender operation, if this individual feels incomplete, gets depressed, and commits suicide? Obviously no doctor can be forced by the state to conduct a cosmetic procedure, but one has to question the morals of these doctors when one realizes that an extra pair of false breasts is doing no real harm to anyone.
18:07 January 18, 2012 by bb2
You all assume the doctors refused because of their moral/cultural reasons. Just like any implantable device, when breast implants are approved for use by regualory agencies, they are approved for a certain use/indication. In the case of breast implants, they are approved for use in genotypic females because genotypic females are the subjects of clinical studies to prove the implants are safe for use. Implanting breast implants into non-genotypic females is considered an off label use and some doctors don't use implantables for off label use.

And those of you who judge transsexuals, you have an inability to understand that someone could have completely different emotions, feelings, hormones, and background as you do. You can't imagine being in the same situation and you refuse to do so. You grew up with certain genes, hormones and in a certain environment in which transsexuals are strange and your arguments against transsexuals consist of searching for reasons to go on believing as you already do.
18:34 January 18, 2012 by byke
The first question needs to be, why has this person gone abroad for surgery?

Normally an extensive mental Heath check needs to be done by the state before they agree to help. Could it be this person wasn't of sound mind to begin with and thus went abroad to ignore medical advice.

This could be again part of the reason why 3 seperate clinics refused to work with said person. As even if they offset blame onto the patient in the event of any issues, they have a code of conduct they need to follow.
19:26 January 18, 2012 by SockRayBlue
Move to the US. Idiots get everything free.
20:00 January 18, 2012 by riose
@Grindsprint

They are supposed to be professionals. If they want to stand for their morals, they can quit.

A doctor cannot let someone die because the other guy is a bad person.

@lilsocks

Same thing as facial plastic surgery to people who had accidents. They are not going to die without it. But it would definitely make their life better.

@babashki Who are u to tell what is wright and what is wrong? Do you think they choose to be like transsexuals? (BTW TL, double 's'!)

If they cannot choose what to do with their own bodies who will? You? A doctor?

Don't you have enough problems to get in others people life?
21:08 January 18, 2012 by babashki
@ roise

I was only referring to people you are born healthy ( genitalia wise ) and choose to have the surgery to be a guy..

TL, yet, please check your spelling mistake... there is something called ''spell check''
21:46 January 18, 2012 by strixy
Hey, it is XXI century and it has been scientifically proven that male of female gonads do not determine what a person feels with regards to their sexuality or gender so get over your prejudices. Time to stop ruining people's lifes in the name of 'morality'.

One of my friends is a man but was born as a woman. Heck, I bet some of you will spend the whole night wondering how this is even possible :P He is a great guy, has a doctorate and contributes to the society in many ways.
21:57 January 18, 2012 by HenryPollard
proven? nope.

Some white people feel they are black. Some people feel that they are a cat.

Feeling doesn't make it so.

People are often completely wrong.
22:43 January 18, 2012 by strixy
Yes, it is in fact proven by neurobiologists. Time to update one's data and read some facts.
09:13 January 19, 2012 by anonymous4
Can't he (the tranny) just get a padded bra?
09:56 January 19, 2012 by this_aint_sparta
O gosh all my life i have been thinking of "Boobs job" as something else. :-)
10:40 January 19, 2012 by robban70226
Live and let live!!!!! life is simple, do not complicate it......
10:57 January 19, 2012 by DAVID T
my ex wife had no tits
11:30 January 19, 2012 by Svenny Brogarth
Private doctors, they are entitled to operate on who they like. If the need for surgery was legitimate for any form of health reasons, including mental the patient would be able to get it done by state hospitals. If as some of the posters on here claim the person would become suicidal without fake boobs im sure measures would be taken by the state in the best interest of the patient. Bottom line is the person simply wants boobs, there is no need, so the private docs are entitled to say no.
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