The transgender clinic at Government Rajaji hospital (GRH) in Madurai that had taken up gender reassignment surgeries in a big way, would be replicated in many other government hospitals in the State, Health Minister, Ma. Subramanian said on Sunday.
Talking to reporters after inaugurating new infrastructure in the GRH, he said the multi-specialty clinic had given treatment to 207 transgenders in the last few months. "It has done gender reassignment surgeries to 44 persons free of cost," he said.
Stating that it was a big achievement by the GRH in a short span of time, the Minister said, otherwise the poor third-genders would have had to to travel to Mumbai or Thailand for such surgeries.
Stating that the GRH was a pioneer in such additional facilities being provided, Mr. Subramanian said many government hospitals across the State would also take up this surgery. “An announcement on this issue would be made during the debate on Budget in the Assembly,” the Minister said.
Madurai Medical College Dean A. Rathnavel said bilateral mastectomy was done to 40 trans-male (female to male conversion), by the plastic surgery team headed by Prof. Dr. P. Suresh Kumar. The surgical procedures have been included in the Chief Minister's Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme.
The GRH has plans to do breast implantation for trans-female (male to female) persons in the near future. Co-ordinator of Transgender Clinic Dr. Sridhar said the surgeries were done after adequate psychiatric counselling to the patients.
Earlier, Mr. Subramanian along with Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan inaugurated new facilities at the GRH, including an intensive care unit at a cost of ₹55 lakh and an operation theatre at ₹70 lakh. A new burns ward, established at a cost of ₹35 lakh, to treat additional patients was also opened on the occasion. A six-storey new block, under construction on the GRH premises, would be inaugurated by December-end. The building, coming up at ₹128 crore, will get all advanced medical equipment worth ₹139 crore, to provide advanced treatment.
Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan, Madurai Collector S. Aneesh Sekhar, Corporation Commissioner K.P. Karthikeyan, and MLAs, M. Boominathan and A. Venkatesan, were among those present.
