Conscientious Objection to Providing Gender Health Care in Pediatric Training: Balancing the Vulnerability of Transgender Youth and the Vulnerability of Pediatric Residents

Within pediatric graduate medical education, care of transgender youth presents opportunities for deepening learners' understanding of equity, access, the role of the physician as advocate, and health disparities caused by stigma and minority stress. But when a pediatric resident objects to providing health care to this uniquely vulnerable population, due to their personal beliefs and values, how should pediatrician-educators respond? Important reasons to respect healthcare professionals’ conscience have been described in the scholarly literature; however, equally important concerns have also been raised about the extent to which conscientious objection should be permitted in a pluralistic society, particularly given power differentials that favor healthcare professionals and grants them a monopoly over certain services.

source https://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(21)00892-1/fulltext?rss=yes