The experiences of transgender and gender diverse children and youth using telehealth: a meta-ethnography

BackgroundTransgender and gender diverse (TGD) children and youth face significant disparities when accessing healthcare. Telehealth has become a promising strategy for improving healthcare access. The experiences of TGD children and youth using telehealth to access healthcare are poorly understood.AimTo synthesize the current evidence on TGD children and youths' experiences using telehealth.MethodsA meta-ethnography was conducted on seven papers examining TGD children and youths' experiences with telehealth.ResultsThe main findings expressed by TGD children and youth regarding their experiences of telehealth encompassed the themes of feeling safe, feeling seen, ease of access, and technological affordances.DiscussionWe propose a model to consider when designing telehealth for TGD children and youth entitled Trans-IT, incorporating the four key themes: feeling safe, feeling seen, ease of access, and technological affordances. Overall, this study identifies the range of user experiences that influence the accessibility and relevance of care available through telehealth for TGD children and youth and provides a foundation for future policy, practice, and research.