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The Right Support
Creating an atmosphere of inclusion and acceptance for all people coming to an organization for help begins with the core values of that agency. Here, at ICL, we believe in and offer person-centered, recovery-oriented, trauma-informed, and integrated physical and behavioral healthcare. No matter a...
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Transgender and HIV: Stigma and Discrimination Can No Longer Have a Place in Healthcare
In the past five or six years, I was privileged to be invited by several non-profit organizations and universities to deliver cultural humility trainings and presentations about transgender identities and experiences, and how to improve services to meet the needs of the transgender community. As a...
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Uniquely LGBTQ
This article is the second in a quarterly series giving voice to the perspectives of individuals with lived experiences as they share their opinions on a particular topic. The authors of this column facilitated a focus group of their peers to inform this writing. The authors are served by Services...
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Understanding Eating Disorders in Gay Males
The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders estimate that men account for 1 million of the roughly 8 million Americans that suffer from eating disorders (McMurray, 2013). Within the gay community there is a hidden epidemic of eating disorders. Gay men are up to three times...
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Behavioral Health, the LGBTQ Community, and Managed Care
A wise man once said that at times of sweeping transformation, “all that is solid melts into air.” As the delivery system responds to changes driven by the transition to Medicaid managed care and, ultimately, value-based payment, many are concerned about meeting the needs of historically...
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What This Parent of a Transgender Child Wants You to Know
I am the proud mother of two young men, but I didn’t always know I had two sons. For 15 years, I believed I was raising a daughter. My younger child, who I now know is my son, is transgender. My husband and I supported his transition, at 15, from female to male. I’ve been criticized and...
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The NYSPA Report: DSRIP Made Easy
New York State’s Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program is a five-year plan to disburse a total of $8 billion in federal funding in order to comprehensively transform the way that Medicaid services are provided and paid for, with the aim of reducing avoidable hospitalizations by...
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Substance Use Disorder and the LGBTQ Youth Community
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, compared with the general population, gay and bisexual men, lesbian and transgender individuals have higher rates of substance abuse, are more likely to use alcohol and drugs and to continue heavy drinking into later life...
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Substance Use and Treatment Services for the LGBTQ Community
Research reveals that individuals who identify as being part of the LGBTQ community represent a higher percentage of substance users as compared to those who do not identify. In fact, there are estimates to maintain that about 20 to 30 percent of the LGBTQ population is using substances as compared...
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Promoting Cultural Competence to Address Health Disparities and Improve Health Outcomes
Health disparities are preventable differences in health outcomes that are experienced by disadvantaged populations. They are a leading factor in the incidence, prevalence, mortality, and burden of health conditions across specific populations in the US. These factors can influence the available...
