Talking about LGBT health issues is challenging in many ways – the range of health care issues is broad and diverse, and can be complex. Beyond our obvious need for medical services, there is a need to examine the link between LGBT human rights issues and our general health. Lack of basic civil rights can have a direct – and often damaging – impact on our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

I believe that our health and our human rights are absolutely intertwined. Our unequal treatment as LGBT Americans has a profound effect on our health and quality of life. While I firmly believe this, I’m not alone. The United Nations and the World Health Organization identify access to quality health care and the health status of any group as one of the most powerful measures of the group’s civil, social and economic rights.

And increasing numbers of health care organizations, providers and community-based organizations have come to the same conclusion: It is not enough to provide a safety net of services for those who are stigmatized and denied rights and dignity; real progress means becoming powerful advocates for fundamental human rights.

We can look at our youth for one example. Research has shown that young LGBT individuals are at increased risk for depression, substance abuse and homelessness. This isn’t because they are biologically predisposed to these difficulties, but rather because too many of our youth still live in places where schools don’t feel safe, friends aren’t accepting, and parents throw them out when they find out they are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Their lack of acceptance, support and full human rights causes serious health and health care consequences.

I’ve said before that we cannot be inundated with messages of intolerance, discrimination and hatred without consequence. It’s clear that our current crystal methamphetamine crisis is another example of this. This drug provides temporary relief and escape from a hostile climate, but brings with it damaging, severe and life-altering health and other consequences.

In the original draft of the government report “Healthy People 2010,” LGBT Americans weren’t even included as a population. The second draft, however, identified LGBT Americans as one of the six populations experiencing health disparities.

As a follow-up, the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association produced a report entitled “The Healthy People 2010: Companion Document on LGBT Health.” The 500-plus page report identifies barriers to accessing health care, confirming widely-held beliefs that LGBT people often avoid accessing health care due to frequently encountered discrimination within the system, and because many health care providers often lack competency and/or sensitivity in the area of LGBT health. These barriers may lead LGBT people to delay seeking vital preventative and even emergency health care, which can have life-altering results.

We’ve all heard too many times the stories of lesbians who have delayed preventive gynecological care, because they didn’t want to honestly answer questions about their sexual activity, and, only later, when symptoms persist are they diagnosed with late-stage cancers. Or gay men who have come out to their doctors, only to have that doctor focus on HIV when these men may have family histories of diabetes or cancer. And imagine the challenges transgender people face in accessing appropriate health care when they may present a gender different than the gender assigned at their birth.

At The Center, we believe our access to health care should be viewed as an indicator for how far we have come in our fight for full equality. We view access to culturally competent, quality health care as one our most fundamental civil rights goals.

The Center has a unique role in and a commitment to addressing our community’s health care needs. We know that we must provide a safety net of health and mental health services since too many LGBT people remain underserved within our current health care system. Yet, at the same time, it is critical that we advance LGBT human rights through our public policy work in order to prevent the homo-negativity, stigma and discrimination that are often the fundamental cause of some of our most pressing health concerns.

It will never be enough for us to just bandage the wounds inflicted; we want to stop them from being inflicted in the first place.

The Center’s Health Services offer quality, low-fee, affirmative, individual, couple and family counseling to LGBT and HIV-infected community members. For more information, please contact the information and referral specialist at (619) 260-6380. The Center’s Health Services is located at 2313 El Cajon Blvd.