WellBN GP Practice treats around 26,000 patients and is based over three surgeries.
In recent months they have faced an investigation by the Sussex Integrated Care Board (ICB) for continuing to prescribe puberty blockers and hormones to under-18 trans patients, even though this is perfectly legal.
The UK ban on puberty blockers
As of March 2024 puberty blockers are banned in the UK to treat gender dysphoria in under-18s. This decision followed the much discredited Cass Review. A government website describes the ban as the “sale and supply of puberty blockers via private prescriptions for the treatment of gender incongruence and/or gender dysphoria to be banned indefinitely in the UK for under 18s.”
The website also mentions that
NHS patients who are already receiving these medicines for gender incongruence and/or gender dysphoria can continue to access them, as can patients receiving the medicines for other uses.
This means treatments that have already started should not be stopped suddenly, and patients already taking puberty blockers should still be able to obtain them and access healthcare via normal NHS routes. GPs were advised at the time of the ban to continue prescriptions from the private sector if they felt comfortable doing so.
NHS Sussex has given us a statement
A spokesperson for NHS Sussex said:
Following concerns raised about some prescribing for children and young people by WellBN in Brighton and Hove, that may fall outside of national clinical policy and guidance, we are working with NHS England and have launched an investigation into this activity to ensure the most appropriate care and treatment in line with national clinical policy.
Independent clinicians are reviewing medical records and prescriptions will continue during this process. We recognise this may be worrying for families, and our priority is safe, evidence-based care, with access to appropriate specialist services and support.
NHS Sussex is not seeking to close the WellBN practice. Outside of the investigation, the practice continues to operate as normal.
“It’s horrific what NHS are doing to us”
Parents of children receiving trans healthcare at WellBN have described life as “truly awful’’ and “really hard to keep going’’.
Laura’s daughter Olive(not their real names) began taking puberty blockers when she was just 12. In the past four years of treatment her daughter has undergone full female puberty. Her body has developed feminine characteristics – including full breast growth.
Laura described the blocker ban as ‘forced detransition’ and ‘inhumane’. The impact of the ban on her child has been severe, as reported previously.
My child stopped eating and was on suicide watch, she was going to take her own life. She couldn’t look in the mirror and [imagine] having a deep voice and beard.
She explains the horror and distress caused by WellBn being investigated.
It’s horrific what NHS are doing to us, We said no to [them] accessing our patient files and they threatened the senior lead drs to close the entire practice. They still breached data.
A review of medical notes
Laura’s daughter has now received a letter from Sussex ICB about the situation. The letter stated:
A team of health professionals will review your medical notes and understand how you have been provided with the specific gender medicines.
The review will be to see how the medicines were given to you, whether they have caused you any harm, and how you can be best supported for the the future.’’
Laura calls it “a predetermined investigation”.
She believes so much harm is being done to her child by the government. As she explained earlier:
You can’t just rip children off these meds years into transition. My daughter is tanner stage 5 [Breast Development]. She never entered male puberty. Your jaw would drop if you saw her. I can’t let these people win.
They know this is likely to cause suicides. They don’t care! We jumped through every hoop for years and we followed what the government asked of us. I’m in Surrey, her doctor is in Brighton, you can imagine what this is doing to us.
The situation has gotten so much worse
Robyn (not their real name), who has a child registered at WellBN describes the situation as “gotten so much worse’’
Things have gotten so much worse, we had a meeting with WellBN last night with an update and the ICB have said that they are no longer allowed to prescribe puberty blockers to under 16’s, regardless of the fact that these are children who were prescribed before the ban. They will not be talking to us or our child, some anonymous medical team, they won’t tell us who, will review their records and decide a medical plan moving forward without ever having a conversation with us.
All children will be referred to Gids [Gender Identity Development Service}, and or CAMHS [Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service]. They will speed up our referral to Gids and they [Gids] will not be prescribing [Puberty blockers] either. My child isn’t even in the list, we took him off 2 years ago and now I’m being told I have no choice. So, forced detransition for all under 16’s, well those who can’t afford to go private. I’m being told they are working on laws to stop us accessing private health care also.
They have also said that no GP in this country will be prescribing blockers, regardless of the fact they were started before the ban. Which is completely the opposite of what the law states, and completely against the letter we were all sent after the ban came into place. We were told that GP’s would take over the prescription. Except no GP would, only Dr Sam, which is why we all went to him. We did exactly what we were told to do and now we are being treated like criminals for it.
I am really really angry and we keep getting told the information we are being given is private and confidential but I cannot sit on this anymore, they are destroying the lives of our children and we are being expected to sit back and quietly take it.
The suffering is reaching crisis point
Laura and Robyn are just two examples of parents with a trans child/children in the UK. Like them, most are agonising over their health and well-being.
Laura fears all will be lost if ICB Sussex forces her child off the medication.
If ICB Sussex get their own way in a matter of weeks and they force detransition, Olive may well take her life.
Laura is determined not to let that happen.
They will have to pry her repeat NHS prescription out of [my] dead clammy hand. I’m going to be a problem for these people, that’s a promise.
This is an incredibly tough time to be trans in the UK. Please reach out and support trans people in your community. You may just save a life by doing so.
A staff member at WellBn had this to say
NHS Sussex threatened closure in April and September, by withdrawal of GMS contract.
They ignored staff concerns. Resulted in staff holding extremely harrowing meetings with families traumatised.
NHS Sussex has not met with families. They’re not seen, or heard. They have been erased.
They describe it as “terrifying” and feel “sickened”.
It’s so horrible, mental health suffering. So unjust and cruel.
Dr Sam Hall gave a statement
Dr Sam Hall who used to work at WellBN Clinic, said:
NHS Sussex have twice threatened WellBN with withdrawal of the GMS [General Medical Service] contract held by the GP partnership. WellBN have been looking after trans youth for over 5 years with the full knowledge of NHS Sussex and NHSE. Why is this suddenly an issue?
This is a bullying tactic designed to scare them into withdrawing life-saving care, despite warnings from coroners about the risk to life for trans young people.
A full interview with Dr Sam will be published soon.
