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Questions about HRT procedure (GP or Endo)?
Hi everyone.
I’m hoping to start HRT in the near future, but I was curious about some specifics of the procedure that maybe people here can help me with. I have spoken about it briefly with my GP when I went to get a referral for a psychologist, but she didn’t seem to know many details. I want to do everything safely with medical supervision if possible. So… questions:
Do I absolutely need to see an endocrinologist, or are there some GPs with expertise in HRT?
If I do need to see an endo, is it subsidised by medicare at all? What are the approximate costs? How often would you visit them?
Should I get a blood test from a GP first before the first appointment?
Will a local endo be suffcient or should I make the effort to travel to Sydney to see one with transgender experience?
Are the HRT medications themselves on the PBS? Is it cheaper to get them locally or import from overseas?Any help at all with this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
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2 Replies
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Hi Alice7
Your decision to see a psychologist may not have been the correct one. An Endo may want a referral from a psychiatrist before they will commence you on HRT. A fine point but it may save you time & money.
You do not need to see an Endocrinologist, but a GP with experience with TG matters let alone HRT will be hard to find.
Yes the cost of seeing an Endo is subsidized. If your referral to the Endo is via a specialist – eg; Psych – the referral will last 3 months. If the referral is written by a GP it will last 12 months. The cost that the Endo charges is up to them. You may be lucky & find one that bulk bills. The frequency of the visits to the Endo will vary depending on them – usually anywhere from 3-6 months.
The pre-visit blood tests would help – if your GP knows what to order. There are some very specific blood tests.
Most Endo’s should know what they are doing – BUT – I have heard of awful stories – even from Endo’s attached to Gender Centres.
Most HRT meds are on the PBS. Some like Androcur come with dreadful restrictions, if you want to obtain them via the PBS. You either have to have metastatic prostatic cancer or have your name put on the sexual offenders list to obtain Androcur via the PBS. There have been previous threads about the merits or de-merits of obtaining drugs from OS.
I hope that that answers some of your questions.
Lisa
Moderator
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Thanks Lisa, that was very informative. I’ll try to keep this thread updated with my own experiences when I progress to that stage.
