The purpose of the BMUS guidance is to clarify who should and should not be offered TVUS, reduce discrimination, and maximise equality in ultrasound services, support high‑quality patient care, and provide advice to practitioners around TVUS, governance, and safety.
The BMUS intend that the guidance be used as a practical framework for educators, service leads, and ultrasound professionals to adapt locally.
The PDA LGBT+ Network committee reviewed the BMUS guidance with the perspective of LGBT+ patients and practitioners in mind. They note that the guidance recognises transvaginal scans as an important diagnostic modality and considers the patient holistically throughout.
The BMUS guidance explicitly highlights the issue of transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming people being denied important healthcare services due to misinformed or prejudiced assumptions about their requirements by providers. Such delays and denials are significant barriers to LGBT+ people accessing healthcare.
Practitioners are also considered in the document, which makes clear that protected characteristics of the practitioner are irrelevant to the provision of the scan.
Adam Somerville, President of the PDA LGBT+ Network said, “We believe that the BMUS document is a very good example of inclusive guidance for clinical practice. We hope that inclusive practice such as this will narrow the significant health inequality experienced by some LGBT+ people.”
Get involved
- Join the PDA LGBT+ Network here.
- Follow the PDA LGBT+ Network on social media using the hashtag #PDAlgbt
- Contact the PDA LGBT+ Network committee by emailing [email protected]
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