Rush for plastic surgery at India’s first trans-OPD

Samad Hoque

New Delhi, September 29

India’s first dedicated outpatient department (OPD) for trans people at the central government’s Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in the capital has got off to a good start with visitors beginning to seek health services as an equal right.

Inaugurated on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday, September 17, the OPD has been two weeks into operation with the majority of visitors registering for plastic surgeries, gender reassignment and laser hair removal.

The transgender OPD is run once a week on Fridays from 2-4 pm.

While the first week saw 25 patients visiting the OPD, the second week saw 15 patients.

The department offers free treatment, investigations, sex-change surgery, endocrinology counselling, psychological assessment, plastic surgery and dermatology services to name a few.

With her side-parting short hair, Yashika Yogesh, a transwoman who visited the OPD today, said the OPD was a positive step towards ensuring healthcare for all but would take a while to pick up speed.

“But this is a huge step forward. Getting a surgery done at a private hospital is not affordable at all. Also, there is a growing stigma around our appearance when we visit a hospital. We face harassment as to which queue to stand in (male or female) and by our dressing style, we are discriminated against,” she said.