Transgender and gender-diverse individuals often face a fragmented healthcare system, where primary care, mental health services, and gender-affirming care exist in silos. This separation can create unnecessary delays, increase stigma, and prevent patients from receiving the consistent, affirming support they need.
An integrated approach, where primary care and mental health services work together, offers a more holistic model of transgender care.
Recent studies in 2025 confirm what many providers and patients have long known. When physical health and mental health care are combined in a safe, affirming environment, outcomes improve dramatically.
Why Integrated Care Matters for Transgender Patients
Transgender individuals are more likely to experience both physical health disparities and higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation.
Much of this stems not from being transgender itself, but from discrimination, stigma, and systemic barriers in healthcare.
For example:
- Routine preventive screenings are often missed when providers are not trained in transgender health.
- Mental health concerns may go untreated if primary care providers do not coordinate with therapists or psychiatrists.
- Patients sometimes face the burden of educating their doctors, leading to delays in treatment and loss of trust in the system.
An integrated model ensures that these needs are addressed together. Patients can manage blood pressure, diabetes, or hormone therapy in the same system where they access counseling or psychiatric support.
Evidence from 2025: The Case for Integration
Several new studies in 2025 highlight the importance of blending mental health and primary care for transgender patients.
Hormone Therapy via Telehealth Improves Mental Health
A 2025 cohort study in the Journal of Medical Internet Research followed U.S. transgender adults beginning hormone therapy through telehealth. Researchers observed significant reductions in depression and anxiety.
Even more importantly, 60% of patients who reported suicidal thoughts at the start no longer did so at follow-up. This shows that access to gender-affirming primary care, even virtually, has a powerful impact on mental health.
Access Disparities in Paris
A 2025 BMC Public Health study on transgender patients at a Paris hospital revealed delays in both physical and mental healthcare, particularly for those experiencing social vulnerability.
The findings underscore the need for integrated systems where preventive, sexual, and mental health services are not siloed but offered together.
Lower Depression Risk with Hormone Therapy
In JAMA Network Open (2025), a large cohort study found that transgender adults receiving hormone therapy were less likely to experience moderate to severe depression compared to those without access.
This provides hard data that integrated hormone therapy in primary care settings contributes to psychological well-being.
The Role of Discrimination
A 2025 study in Sexuality Research and Social Policy showed that transgender and non-binary adults who experienced discrimination in healthcare were far more likely to report depression and anxiety.
Integration alone is not enough. Providers must also build safe, affirming environments to prevent retraumatization.
Together, these studies make one message clear: when care is accessible, affirming, and integrated, transgender health outcomes improve significantly.
What Does Integrated Transgender Care Look Like?
A strong integrated system includes several components:
- Primary Care: routine checkups, chronic disease management, vaccinations, preventive screenings.
- Mental Health Services: counseling, psychiatric evaluation, crisis support.
- Gender-Affirming Care: hormone therapy, puberty blockers, surgical referrals, and long-term monitoring.
- Social Support: navigation services, community resources, and peer support.
- Cultural Competence: providers trained in transgender health, inclusive intake forms, and respectful communication.
When these elements exist in the same system, or are at least coordinated seamlessly, patients receive truly holistic, patient-centered care.
Benefits of Integration for Patients
Integrated transgender care offers clear benefits:
- Improved Mental Health: Reduced depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation.
- Better Physical Outcomes: Higher rates of preventive screenings, improved chronic disease management.
- Increased Trust: Patients feel respected, leading to stronger provider-patient relationships.
- Streamlined Care: Less stress navigating multiple systems or explaining gender identity repeatedly.
- Early Intervention: Problems are caught sooner when mental and physical health providers share information.
Barriers That Still Exist
Despite progress, many challenges remain.
- Lack of provider training in transgender health.
- Insurance gaps or refusal to cover gender-affirming treatments.
- Discrimination and stigma within medical systems.
- Limited telehealth access for rural or low-income patients.
- Fragmented referral systems that force patients to prove their identity at each step.
Addressing these barriers requires policy change, medical education, and organizational commitment.
Moving Forward: The Path to Inclusive, Integrated Care
The future of transgender healthcare lies in building systems that unify physical and mental health under one roof.
As 2025 studies show, patients thrive when gender-affirming care is accessible, affirming, and connected to broader health needs.
For healthcare systems, this means:
- Expanding telehealth access for gender-affirming care.
- Training providers across all specialties in transgender health.
- Embedding mental health professionals into primary care practices.
- Developing inclusive policies that prevent discrimination.
Transgender Care at Kleiman Healthcare Services
At Kleiman Healthcare Services, we understand that true wellness goes beyond physical health. It includes emotional resilience, social support, and gender-affirming care.
Our Transgender Care program is designed to be fully integrated:
- Compassionate primary care for routine and chronic health needs.
- Access to mental health services, including counseling and psychiatric support.
- Evidence-based hormone therapy and gender-affirming treatments.
- A welcoming, stigma-free environment where every patient is respected.
By combining primary care with mental health support, we ensure that transgender and gender-diverse patients receive the holistic, affirming care they deserve.