Hospital policies regarding patients who refuse transgender roommates

Background Situations in which a patient refuses to share a hospital room with a transgender individual raise significant ethical and policy questions.Aims The present study sought to determine whether hospitals in New York City have established policies to address roommate refusal.Methods The authors obtained the policies of New York hospitals through direct solicitation and through review of public sources.Results The authors found that only three of the fifteen largest hospitals in New York City appear to have rooming policies that address patients who decline to share rooms with transgender patients.Discussion The absence of such policies is an oversight, which raises significant concerns for the welfare of transgender patients. At a time when ensuring equity for transgender patients is drawing the increased attention that it merits, addressing the absence of such rooming policies is a crucial step toward protecting the wellbeing of this vulnerable population and furthering transgender-affirming care.