The British Medical Association (BMA) has pledged to evaluate the Cass Review from a “neutral position”, after the organisation was heavily criticised for opposing the report.
In a statement, the doctors’ union said its Council of members voted to clarify that it will “retain a neutral position on the recommendations of the Cass Review” while it undertakes its own “evidence-led evaluation”.
On 31 July, the BMA voted to “publicly critique” Dr Hilary Cass’s authoritative report and lobby the Government and the NHS to ensure they stop implementing her recommendations for children’s gender services.
‘Damage’
BMA Council Chair Professor Phil Banfield said it “will listen to those with lived experience either as patients or as clinicians, consider the link between evidence and recommendation, and compare the recommendations with the actions or strategies that have arisen from them”.
He added: “I cannot predict the outcome of our evaluation. However, I am clear that we will hear different perspectives, always prioritising the needs of transgender children and young people, who deserve the very best care.”
Dr Louise Irvine of the Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender welcomed the BMA’s announcement, saying its previous decision had “damaged the reputation of the union and its commitment to evidence-based medicine. I hope this change can help the BMA to earn it back.”
Criticism
Last month, a former chairman of the BMA council criticised its opposition to the Cass Review.
James Johnson, who chaired the council from 2003 to 2007, told The Times that he was “horrified and saddened by the direction taken by the organisation”.
He said the BMA had “completely failed to consult the members it purports to represent”, and the current council’s views were “a world away from those of most doctors”.
Over 1,400 doctors, including 900 BMA members, signed an open letter criticising the union for “going against the principles of evidence-based medicine and against ethical practice”.
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