Cross-country flights just one of many barriers for trans Albertans

NOTE: An earlier version of this story used the term gender ‘reassignment’. We have updated the story to use the more inclusive term of gender affirmation, excluding the terms used in the statement by Alberta Health Services. 

Years of waiting, flying across the country for major surgery, and paying out of pocket for big parts of the trip.

All of this, the reality for Albertans trying to access gender affirmation surgery.

“Everything is so obscure, and I find that to be the biggest challenge — how confusing it is to navigate this system and there isn’t much support for patients.”

Brett Bergie first became aware of her transness in her early 30s — starting the process for surgery around 2015.

Since then, it’s been an uphill battle.

“I was told the next time I came into the office that the wait time was four years before I could see somebody,” said Bergie. “Like, that to my mind is fairly atypical of what a patient trying to access a surgery would face, in terms of that kind of wait time, that’s absurd.”

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Those years aren’t spent just waiting around. Brett has had to go through multiple physicals to affirm she is healthy enough to undergo a surgery that still hasn’t even been booked.

“I just feel like it’s wasteful.

“There’s nothing in the calendar in terms of when the surgery is going to happen, so for sure, there’ll be physicals in the future to affirm I’m a candidate for surgery, but I’ve had two of them now and I’m still waiting for funding to be approved from Alberta Health Services.”

Those seeking care also need psychiatrist assessments.

“You have to have a first screening and then there’s a second opinion by a different psychiatrist. So, in the second instance, the questions were very invasive, like pulling out a lot of private information and intimate details, and it was very uncomfortable, so it just gets to a level where it’s like, is this really necessary?”

And the challenges don’t stop there.

Alberta doesn’t offer gender affirmation surgery in the province. Meaning, Brett needs to go to Montreal to finish her health care journey.

“That’s just very daunting to have to, presumably, take myself and my family across the country to access a surgery that’s very invasive and focused on the torso, and then to have to jump back on a five-hour flight within a day or two, I assume, of that surgery, to come home. I just find that really absurd.”

AHS will pay for the surgery itself, and the flight, but not for accommodation or food.

In a statement to CityNews, AHS says:

“Alberta’s government recognizes the challenges that can be faced by LGBTQ2S+ Albertans when seeking health care and is working to improve the services provided to them. An Alberta Health Services Provincial Advisory Committee on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression has been established and is providing input on ways to improve sexual and gender minority health care in our province.

“Alberta’s government continues to provide the Gender Surgery Program through which Albertans can apply for funding to obtain gender reassignment surgery. The current government has made no changes to eligibility for gender reassignment surgery and there is presently no wait list for the program. Because these surgical procedures are highly specialized, patients are referred to the Centre Métropolitain de Chirurgie in Montreal – the only facility in Canada with the surgical expertise to offer this surgery. Most Canadian provinces and territories refer their residents to this facility. Alberta has been referring its residents to this facility since the Gender Surgery Program’s inception. At this time, there are no plans to provide these surgical procedures in the province because of the specific surgical expertise required.

“There is no cap on the number of applicants approved. In 2020/21, Alberta Health approved 116 applications for final stage gender reassignment surgery.”