On December 5th, 2022, the program “Alt-Analytics” (1, 2, 3) of the pro-Kremlin TV channel “Alt-Info” aired a video showing a representative of “Boston Children’s Hospital,” who notes that children know from an early age which gender identity they belong to. The representative, Kerry McGregor, also points out that at the Boston clinic, one can meet children of different ages, from 2-3 years to 9 years old.
While discussing the video, Giorgi Kardava, one of the hosts of the program and the chairman of the pro-Russian “Conservative Movement” party, noted that the rules and norms in the liberal-globalist world look like this. According to him, the Boston Children’s Hospital serves children from the age of 2 and conducts gender reassignment surgeries.
Giorgi Kardava: [She says] that they serve children aged 2 and above; what does this mean, a 2-year-old child, for example, a boy, can change sex, remove the genitalia, or undergo hormonal therapy there.”
Russian-language Facebook users have been circulating the same claims(1, 2, 3) since August 2022, noting that children who want to undergo a sex reaffirmation surgery can remove their uterus at the Boston Children’s Hospital. In one video released by Boston Children’s Hospital representatives, it is said that children express from an early age that they may not identify with the gender that is their biological sex, and in another video, they talk about a hysterectomy – the medical procedure of removing the uterus.
The claim that children aged 2-9 are able to undergo sex reassignment surgery and/or hormone therapy at Boston Children’s Hospital is disinformation. The clinic’s website stresses that the minimum age for all genital surgeries, including hysterectomies, is 18, and that patients must undergo extensive medical and mental health screenings and submit letters of consent from doctors and psychologists to receive permission for the surgery. As for hormonal treatment, it is recommended from the age of 16 in the US.
The website of the Boston Children’s Hospital notes that all genital surgeries are only performed on patients aged 18 and older. In order to undergo chest surgery, the patient has to be at least 15 years old.
In addition, patients seeking surgery must meet specific criteria, including undergoing extensive medical and mental health evaluations and submitting required documentation. Patients must provide letters from their physicians and psychologists certifying that the patient has significant gender dysphoria, is in good mental health, understands the potential risks of the procedure, and is willing to undergo surgery.
In the full version of the video shown on alt-analytics, Boston Children’s Hospital psychologist Kerry McGregor does not even mention gender reassignment surgeries and hormone therapy for young children at all. Speaking of children ages 2-9, she says that when children go to the hospital, they talk to a psychologist about their gender.
McGregor says that family members of gender-diverse children, mostly parents, also consult with a psychologist. During consultations, psychologists talk with parents about how to support their children and promote their development. The clinic also holds meetings with groups of parents, where they are informed about the medical services offered by the clinic.
The video used by Alt-Info is one of several informational videos posted by Boston Children’s Hospital on YouTube back in August 2022, and soon became the target of far-right groups. The clinic has published informative videos on YouTube about medical services offered to transgender patients, including surgeries. After receiving numerous calls and messages containing violent threats and hate speech, the clinic removed the videos and continued to cooperate with law enforcement to protect its staff.
In addition to the hate speech directed at the clinic, far-right groups have disseminated the disinformation that Boston Children’s Hospital offers hysterectomies to young children. The clinic responded to the spread statement on its Twitter account. In their published statement, it is mentioned that the hysterectomy procedure is not performed on young girls, and the minimum age for this operation is 18.
Boston Children’s Hospital follows the guidelines developed by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). According to the latest recommendations of the association, hormonal therapy can be started from the age of 14, which is reduced by 2 years compared to the previous recommendation. The latest edition of the recommendations states that hormone treatment in adolescents is appropriate from the age of 16 years, although there are recent recommendations regarding the initiation of therapy at the age of 14 years. The association also notes that there is a limited amount of research on youth who started hormone therapy at age 14.
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