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Critical Issues and LGBT-Two Spirit Populations: Highlights from the HONOR Project Study

A health survey of Two-Spirit Native Americans designed to (a) test a theoretically driven stress and coping model among 447 twospirit American Indians via a structured survey; (b) design and test the feasibility of various peer-driven sampling recruitment methodologies to produce a national representative sample; and (c) conduct a qualitative study with 65 leaders to identify major strengths and coping strategies in this population.

Report by the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute at the University of Washington, 2010. 

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I Want to Be Like Nature Made Me: Medically Unnecessary Surgeries on Intersex Children in the US

In this report, based on interviews with intersex adults, parents of intersex children, and medical practitioners working with intersex people, interACT and Human Rights Watch document the fall-out from that medical paradigm, and the failure of the medical community to regulate itself effectively. There have been changes in practice in recent years, with many doctors now advising against surgery on infants and young children. But even so, surgery continues to be practiced on children with atypical sex characteristics too young to participate in the decision, when those procedures both carry a meaningful risk of harm and can be safely deferred.

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Los Angeles LGBT Center: Recognize. Intervene. Support. Empower (RISE)

RISE offers comprehensive care coordination through a Care Coordination Team (CCT). The CCT partners with families of LGBTQ youth ages 5 and older and focuses on barriers to permanency. RISE also includes an outreach and relationship-building component to support public and private agencies in working with LGBTQ youth. This component includes a three-hour LGBTQ foundation training, a three-hour social work practice with LGBTQ training for foster parents and kinship care, and organizational coaching.

Wilson et al, 2016

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Sexual and Reproductive Health of Youth in Out-of-Home Care: A Policy and Practice Framework for Child Welfare

For the past several years, the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) has been working to bring attention to the unmet needs of youth in foster care who are expecting a child and/or parenting. This document is the cornerstone of a three-part compendium of sexual and reproductive health guidance and resources for child welfare jurisdictions. This document is intended primarily for child welfare leadership and policy makers. The document briefly explores the urgent need for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care for youth in out-of-home care and lays down nine fundamental principles for action. It provides extensive guidance for jurisdictions as they consider the policies and practices they should have into place to better serve adolescents in or leaving foster care.

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Your Rights Related to Sexual Reproductive Health: A Guide for Youth in Care

This document is one of three in a compendium of sexual and reproductive health guidance and resources for child welfare jurisdictions from a national workgroup convened by CSSP. The goal of this document is to provide jurisdictions with a means of helping youth (in foster care or extended care) in understanding their SRH care rights, and give them practical information that will help them exercise their rights and getting their service needs met. The other two documents in this series include a policy and practice framework for child welfare leaders and policy makers and a practical tool meant specifically for use by caseworkers. Both this document and the one designed for caseworkers are aligned with the recommendations on current best practices around SRH policy and practice contained in the policy framework. Includes LGBTQ+ specific considerations and resources.