DOH Launches Sexual, Gender Minority Online Resource

The Hawai‘i Department of Health has launched an online resource hub addressing Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) in honor of Pride Month.

This is the first DOH website dedicated to resources for SGM (also known as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other, or LGBTQ+) people in Hawai‘i, as well as their loved ones and allies. The site was developed by the DOH SGM Workgroup, a multi-sector collaboration of various state agencies and community stakeholders, in partnership with the DOH Harm Reduction Services Branch.

“The SGM group exemplifies the importance of having everyone at the table,” said Jen Jenkins, Community Co-Chair of the SGM Workgroup. “Our collective voices and experiences produced this website, which adds to our work of improving the health and well-being of LGBTQ+ people across the state.”

The SGM Workgroup identified a community need for an online hub for local resources, among priorities that included data reports, legislative protections, and intersex health. The resources and materials on the SGM Online Resource Hub were recommended by members of the SGM Workgroup and the site includes topics such as gender, health, education, safe spaces, ‘ohana support, and legal. DOH continues to rely on workgroup members and community partners to contribute to the ongoing development and relevancy of the online resource.

“With recent federal updates on healthcare protections for transgender people, it is more important than ever that we launch of this resource hub,” said Thaddeus Pham, DOH Co-Chair of the SGM Workgroup. “We look to the thoughtful and insightful contributions from our workgroup members and community stakeholders to make the website a robust, evolving, and perennial resource for our SGM ‘ohana.”

To access the resource hub, visit https://health.hawaii.gov/sexual-gender-minorities.

Additional SGM resources from DOH are at https://health.hawaii.gov/camhd/lgbtq-safe-spaces/.

For more information on joining the SGM Workgroup, email Thaddeus Pham at thaddeus.pham@doh.hawaii.gov.

The launch of the SGM Online Resource Hub was motivated by tremendous support and requests for greater public health action following the publication of the inaugural 2017 Hawai‘i Sexual and Gender Minority Health Report. The 2017 report highlighted the stark health and social disparities experienced by SGM communities. In response, the Department of Health convened a workgroup with community partners and stakeholders to prioritize and implement SGM issues. One outcome from the workgroup was the first-ever Hawai‘i Transgender Youth Health Report in 2018, which continues to have implications for local and national policy and legislation.