A qualitative inquiry into the experience of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersexed students in accessing healthcare in a contact higher education institution

Abstract

South African institutions of higher learning remain unfriendly and hostile environments for queer students who reportedly continue to experience homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in these spaces. This qualitative enquiry explored the experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersexed (LGBTI) students in accessing healthcare in a contact higher education institution. The findings suggest that LGBTI issues are silenced within the university spaces and this blocks the availability of a targeted and strategic approach to deal with the healthcare issues of queer students. Furthermore, it was found that the healthcare services are heterocentric in nature, mainly targeting heterosexual students and deliberately excluding LGBTI students from accessing these services. In addition, the heteronormative attitudes held by healthcare professionals create added barriers for LGBTI students to access healthcare services. Religiously motivated stigma and discrimination prevented healthcare professionals from providing culturally appropriate healthcare services to LGBTI students, thereby excluding them from accessing these services. This research concludes that university management should take decisive action in supporting a human rights framework in order to protect the rights of LGBTI students. Sensitization training as well as the training curriculum of healthcare professionals should include aspects of sexual orientation and gender identity.