Planning and Funding
Telephone: 0064 3 364 4130
P O Box 1600,
Fax: 0064 3 364 4165
CHRISTCHURCH
[email address]
15 April 2019
Gloria Fraser
Email: [FYI request #10073 email]
Dear Gloria
RE Official Information Act request CDHB 10079
I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your email dated 12 April 2019 requesting the following information
under the Official Information Act from Canterbury DHB regarding gender affirming healthcare availability.
Specifically:
1. Are transgender healthcare providers under the Canterbury District Health Board encouraged to follow
Oliphant et al’s (2018) Guidelines for gender affirming healthcare for gender diverse and transgender
children, young people and adults in Aotearoa New Zealand? If not, which guidelines do they follow, if
any?
2. Is a readiness assessment required to access gender-affirming healthcare services? (This is an assessment
of readiness for treatment from a medical and psychosocial perspective, as well as whether the client
understands the risks and benefits of treatment, and is sometimes referred to as a ‘mental health
assessment’).
3. If a readiness assessment is required to access gender-affirming healthcare services, who carries out this
assessment? Is this assessment funded by the Canterbury District Health Board? Does the assessment use
an informed consent model?
4. What steps is the Canterbury District Health Board taking to improve healthcare provision for
transgender New Zealanders?
We will consider your request against the provisions of the Official Information Act (see below) and advise you of
our decision regarding the release of information within 20 working days (being the statutory timeframe
provided within the Act.) Accordingly, and taking into account Good Friday, Easter Monday and ANZAC Day, we
will notify you, no later than 15 May 2019, of our decision.
Your request is being handled by Kathleen Smitheram. If you have any queries, please feel free to contact
either myself (details above) or Kathleen.
([email address]; Phone 364-4134). Please
refer to the OIA number above when phoning or emailing.
If any additional factors come to light which are relevant to your request, please do not hesitate to contact us
so that these can be taken into account.
Yours sincerely
Wayne Turp
Project Specialist
15 Decisions on requests
(1) Subject to this Act, the department or Minister of the Crown or organisation to whom a request is made in accordance wit
h section 12
or is transferred in accordance wit
h section 14 of this Act o
r section 12 of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act
1987 shall, as soon as reasonably practicable, and in any case not later than 20 working days after the day on which the request is received
by that department or Minister of the Crown or organisation,—
(1)(a) decide whether the request is to be granted and, if it is to be granted, in what manner and for what charge (if any); and
(1)(b) give or post to the person who made the request notice of the decision on the request
[If we are unable to make a decision on your request by the date noted above, we will notify you of an extension of that timeframe.]