Dr Helen Webberley founded GenderGP in 2015 as a direct response to the appalling treatment transgender people were receiving from the medical profession. She witnessed discrimination and abuse so severe that it demanded urgent action, leading her to create an entirely new approach to transgender healthcare that would treat trans people with dignity, respect, and clinical expertise.
Responding to medical discrimination
The decision to establish GenderGP came from Helen's firsthand observation of how badly the healthcare system was failing transgender patients. Rather than accepting this as an unchangeable reality, she recognised that trans people deserved far better care than they were receiving. The discrimination was not just occasional poor service, but systematic mistreatment that left vulnerable patients without proper medical support when they needed it most.
Creating an alternative pathway
GenderGP was built specifically to solve the problem of medical professionals failing their trans patients. Helen developed a service that would offer an alternative when traditional healthcare systems were letting people down so severely. This meant designing care pathways that prioritised patient dignity and clinical excellence, rather than the gatekeeping and prejudice that characterised much of mainstream gender healthcare at the time.
Addressing systemic healthcare gaps
Beyond the immediate need to combat discrimination, GenderGP was created to tackle the significant gaps in gender healthcare provision. The service addresses lengthy waiting times and geographical barriers that prevent many transgender people from accessing timely care. Traditional pathways often require extended assessment periods and visits to centralised clinics, creating additional obstacles for those already facing discrimination elsewhere in the healthcare system.
Helen's decision to found GenderGP represents a commitment to transforming transgender healthcare from a system marked by discrimination into one characterised by expertise, compassion, and accessibility. For those seeking gender-affirming care, GenderGP continues to provide the alternative pathway Helen envisioned when she recognised that trans people deserved so much better.