Examining the Attitudes and Behaviors of Health-care Providers Toward LGBT Patients in Lebanon

The present cross-sectional descriptive study examined the attitudes and behaviors of health-care providers toward LGBT patients in Lebanon. Participants (N = 141) generally showed positive attitudes and behaviors toward LGBT patients. Mental health providers were significantly less likely to believe that homosexuality is a mental health disorder or that it is unnatural to identify with a gender identity other than one's biological sex when compared to non-mental health providers. Mental health providers were also more likely to be willing to address transgender people by their gender pronouns, and to believe that homosexuality is a natural variation on the sexual orientation spectrum when compared to non-mental health providers. Findings show favorable attitudes and behaviors of health-care providers toward LGBT individuals when compared to previous investigations in Lebanon. Implications on the educational, research, and policy levels are discussed.