Celebrating Trans Day of Visibility with Home Care

Home Care works with aged care clients, people living with HIV (PLHIV), and NDIS participants. Qualified Home Care peer workers deliver valuable support to clients in their own homes while empowering them to develop their independent skills and capacity.

For many people, seeking support can feel overwhelming. The NDIS system is immense and confusing, adding to the challenges of living with a disability.

Thorne Harbour's NDIS support coordinators can ease the stress of booking appointments, finding the best provider, and ensuring clients are satisfied with their providers. This extra layer of support can help clients improve their understanding of the healthcare system and boost their confidence in their own abilities.

But TGD folks often face other obstacles in their search for support.

Mainstream healthcare providers often lack the knowledge or capacity to provide a safe and affirmative environment for TGD clients. Unfortunately, many TGD clients face micro-aggressions from uninformed providers, creating another barrier to access.

Luckily, TGD peer workers can provide unique and necessary support for participants.

Connection is a powerful tool – TGD peer workers on the Home Care team refer to their lived experiences to build solidarity with clients. They can support clients on a journey to unapologetic self-acceptance.

Being plugged into the community allows TGD peer workers to connect clients to gender-affirming providers, community groups, and TGD-specific resources that may have previously been inaccessible or unknown. Time spent with peer workers helps to normalise and validate clients' experiences.

Each TGD peer worker stands alongside their community to navigate life's challenges together.

Alex Nichols (they/them) is one of Home Care's valued TGD peer workers. They have a background in mental health-focused, intentional peer support training. Alex believes in building relationships with participants through shared experiences and empowering clients to find their personal pathways to recovery. Their devotion to supporting the TGD community has led them to pursue a Master of Social Work.

Outside of work, Alex combines their love of community with their background in English literature. They run a book club focused on TGD storytelling, help develop TGD writers, and have published an anthology of TGD authors with their press, A Thousand Threads. Alex is currently undertaking a writing project alongside LGBTIQ+ refugees and asylum seekers.

Passionate TGD peer workers like Alex don't just improve the health and wellbeing of individual clients. They contribute to creating a more supportive and inclusive healthcare environment for all members of our TGD communities.

Trans Day of Visibility is an opportunity to reflect on ways our broader community can help support TGD people throughout the year. Building authentic relationships with, listening to, and amplifying the voices of trans and gender-diverse folks with intersecting identities will ensure that, in the future, all community members feel seen, heard, and valued.

For more information on supporting the TGD community, please visit Transgender Victoria and download their Trans Allyship Confidence Kit.