Lack of services puts transsexuals at risk

A LACK of services for transsexuals has led to botched sex-change operations and the use of backstreet clinics, according to a transgender expert.

Dr James Kelly, a Dublin-based psychologist who runs a transgender clinic, said the overwhelming desire to live their lives as members of the opposite sex meant some people took drastic action.

“I have patients who never actually got access to services and so there have been cases of self-mutilation, to the extent of some people putting their lives in danger. People also go to various sorts of unqualified practitioners for surgery. I have even heard a rumour of some-one setting up a testicle removal clinic.”