Youth Gender Services

Caring for children and teenagers up to 19 years of age, UMass Memorial Medical Center – Children’s Medical Center Youth Gender Services offers resources and support to transgender and gender non-conforming youth.

Our team of caregivers assists patients with gender transition, if desired, or exploration of their gender identity. We also provide families with assistance in understanding their child’s unique needs, including the effects of gender dysphoria on youth. Our goal is to help our patients comfortably integrate their gender identity into their everyday lives. Check out this handy glossary to help you understand the many terms used to describe the LGBTQIA+ community and to help make conversations easier and more comfortable.

Our program takes a collaborative approach in assessing each person’s individual situation and creating a medical care plan, customized to the individual’s particular needs. Treatment options include hormone therapy and puberty blocking treatments, along with coordinating access to critical resources, such as support groups and referral to a gender therapist.

Patients we care for include:

• Parents of young children whose gender identity differs from their birth gender
• Pre-teens just approaching puberty and considering delaying puberty with medication, known as a pubertal blocker
• Adolescents nearing the end of puberty or having completed puberty with an interest in gender-affirming hormone treatment

For more information and resources, visit LGBTQIA+ Services.