Dear Health New Zealand,

Health New Zealand has commissioned PATHA “to update the national guidelines and referral pathways for gender-affirming healthcare. Clinical director for primary and community care Dr Sarah Clarke said that was expected to be completed by August” (https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/5140...).

My OIA request is as follows:

1) What was the process in commissioning PATHA for the above? Please provide criteria, emails, briefs, meeting minutes etc.

2) How has PATHA shown Health New Zealand that they are reputable, evidence-based, and independent of the culture/ideology wars currently raging in the transgender healthcare space?

3) What are the requirements of the work to be completed by PATHA for the above? e.g.:
Systematic review of evidence to date?;
Full and transparent methodology and data used in systematic evidence review, to be freely publicly available?;
The medical, ethical or other standards that the review, guidelines and pathways must adhere to and state comprehensively?

4) What are the deliverables of the work to be completed by PATHA for the above? e.g:
Report to the Minister of Health on the state of ‘gender-affirming care’ in NZ - using data from around the NZ, split by Region and type and age of care?; trends over-time, concerns?
GP-ready publishable guidelines for evidence-based care for gender-questioning persons including non-medicalised pathways?;
Website-ready explanations of best -practice for gender questioning patients?;
What else?

5) What is the cost of this contract with PATHA? Please specify different elements and deliverables and their dates; a copy of the contract and any correspondence about the contract.

6) The Cass Review Final Report gave PATHA's last guidelines the 2nd to lowest score of all guidelines globally (149/600).
What is the quality assurance process for reviewing what PATHA produces now to ensure it is accurate, comprehensive, balanced and evidence-based?

7) What are the current “referral pathways”?

Kind regards,

B Evans