10 values for gender affirming professionals

Frequently, we hear of patients´ struggles to find healthcare providers who understand the value for gender affirming professionals.  Doctors and other medical practicioners who are open to taking on transhealth issues are still scarce.

If your sibling or offspring were trans, non-binary or intersex (TNBI)–as a clinically significant portion of the planet’s population are–wouldn’t you want them to have the same quality attention and sensitivity to your needs?

It’s no secret that the trans and gender non-conforming (GNC) community have one of the highest rates of discrimination, social isolation, victims to violence and suicide. People transition because they too deserve to live a happy life. As one of our slogan’s states: “It’s for me.”

Values for gender affirming professionals

So, equally important to the societal value of becoming an inclusive provider is the reverse: What values make for an exemplary gender affirming expert?

It’s clear that transitioning humans need help from experts. The same experts who take the time to investigate diabetes or reproductive system problems. The same doctors who pledge to the Hippocratic Oath and work hard to attend to a myriad of health issues…and this is not any different.

Humanity. The same basic human values pertain as with any patient. We would like to illustrate this in ten points for people who remain on the fence–family, friends, teachers, politicians and professionals of trans people– so they may also grasp why gender transition is often necessary. And that it is not a whim.

Let’s focus on 10 values which form part of our 10-year history: one value for each year and letter of our name, F A C I A L T E A M, in recognition of our upcoming anniversary in June.

1. F of Femininity

Femininity is not measured in layers of makeup or length of hair. It’s not a template to copy. Let’s talk about femininity with high intelligence, not high heels, as the concept goes beyond the social constructs of gender. Femininity is associated with sensitivity, subtlety and emotion. It’s the art of expressing your real self without an explicit explanation.

However there is an elusive yet important physical component since your expression depends on something more valuable than a single feature: personal acceptance. A feeling most take for granted, when your appearance corresponds with the self-image you see before opening your eyes.

Facialteam comprehends femininity as the right to feel and be your own brand of feminine. The value for gender affirming professionals is

2. Authenticity

AUTHENTICITY is present in those who seek success through truth, without artifice.  Many of our patients seek facial feminization in order to feel closer to their authentic selves, their authentic gender identity.

We consider our work to be authentic because our team believes passionately in the social benefit of facial gender surgery. Without promises or expectations that cannot be fulfilled, without games of chance with those who put their emotions in our hands.

The value of authenticity in gender-affirming professionals is fundamental when it comes to having a caring approach.

3. Confidence

They say there are three ways to love: with the mind, the heart and the eyes. When one is capable of projecting all of these in one package, we are talking about something more intense than superficial appearances:  Trust in the oneself. For the patient, gender surgery has to do with this self-confidence.

Regarding value for the gender affirming professional, a company culture based on honesty, confidentiality and commitment inspire the trust of patients. That trust which is so difficult to obtain and easy to lose.

4. Identity

It’s easy to say,“Be yourself.” But it is not so simply to enjoy this privilege, when doing so could result in attacks, reproaches and much, much worse. Your identity is  innate. Can you imagine hiding this day after day for a lifetime. It is unthinkable.

Feeling at peace is wellness. Imagine being stuck at an dead-end day job, when what you dream of is a career. It is the right to self-realization. The opposite is stress whose negative effects on our bodies and minds have been proven.

For this reason, Facialteam takes your gender identity seriously. Because your happiness matter too. #beyondgender

5. Attention & Assistance

Patients have often told us that our assistance has saved their lives. Our respectful attention is often a paradigm shift in how they are accustomed to receiving “care.”  This is tremendously rewarding, the central value to being a gender-affirming professional.

Every minute detail matters to Facialteam. FFS Surgery is not a fleeting whim, but an essential necessity for the “normal” functioning in society. That is why our aid is not limited to the four walls of an operating theatre.

Our services are available long before you arrive and at each step of the process. The entire team is at your avail, as well as your partner and family, along one of the most important journeys of your life.

6. Liberty

This is a big one, most simply explained by the parallels with the struggles for liberty of other minorities in history.  Women’s suffrage. Racial Equality. Anti-discrimination laws based on sexual orientation. Respect of spiritual diversity. People with learning disabilities, the blind, deaf…many who have all had speak up to level the playing ground.

Freedom is not the absence of responsibilities. The opposite, it is taking charge of your life as best you see fit, being free to make the most of it.

Taking care of yourself means having the liberty to express your personal identity in all its unique facets. Gender affirming professionals see the value in a collaborative, informed-consent model for care which respects the trans patient’s right to have a voice in their healthcare.

7. Technology

Our continual pursuit of innovation is our form of activism, raising the visibility of the health needs of the trans community. This means not only incorporating updated technology, but also developing new technologies specific to #facialfeminizationsurgery.  Who benefits? Both upcoming providers and, of course, future patients.

The team’s scientific research is featured in 18 medical publications on the outcomes and advancements which contribute to the humanization of the field, impulsing growth in this surgical sector. The value for future professionals in the facial gender surgery discipline and patients alike is indisputable.

8. Empathy

We speak of sincerity in the discovery of your new, evolving truths. Of striving to understand even better the TGNB perspective, whilst recognizing the impossibility of truly knowing how you feel. Of actively listening to your point of view and being transparent and direct in what we say.

The value of gender affirming professionals who practice empathy is felt ten-fold by patients. Because, by seeking a deeper understanding, not only can we attend to your needs more efficiently, but also meet those needs you perhaps haven’t even realized yet. The search for equilibrium between expectations and end-results is elemental and requires a more profound comprehension and communication. An empathic approach to healthcare is a sign of excellence.

9. Acceptance

Acceptance in the wider sense of the word. On one hand, feeling accepted as-is by those who we care for. This is not to imply resignation, yet the opposite: a determination to face oneself and the situation. Accepting the challenge and giving permission to ourselves to grow, even when we are not yet ready to express this openly.

At Facialteam we understand that the path towards gender affirmation is constructed first upon your own acceptance of your identity. Thereafter, it may also be influenced by the acceptance of your social environment.

The journey does not begin nor end with surgery, but it is the part where we as professionals can add value and make our mark. For this reason, we remain by your side, accepting you as the person you are –because feeling accepted matters.

10. Mindful & “Mimo”

It’s typical for many people to spend more time caring for others, leaving little time to love themselves. The month of May brought us Mother’s Day in many countries, a time when we appreciate all people who are like mums to us, who exhibit such altruistic selflessness in their affection.

In Spanish, the word “mimo” means to pamper, yet we insist that this should begin with the “Me.” We care for ourselves when being mindful of our surroundings and of our inner workings. When being observant of both our external and internal environment, we become more capable of magnanimity in our lives.

Open-mindedness is also a key value for gender affirming professionals, as our trans, non-binary and other gender non-conforming friends are all unique and special in their own ways.

For Facialteam, being mindful has meant a magnanimous company culture, inwardly as well as outwardly–being sensitive to the trans community as well as munificent in sharing our knowledge with patients and professionals around the globe. Like charging the batteries, it means looking after the well-being of each individual team member first, so we may then do our absolute best for you, the patient.

10 values | 10 letters | 10 years – F A C I A L T E A M

#facialteam2020 #itsforme #corporatevalues