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This guide provides general suggestions for how transgender people can request gender-affirming care and services in the Washington Department of Corrections (DOC).
Self-Advocacy for Transgender Folks in Washington DOC
For information about gender-affirming services and issues in DOC, we encourage you to refer to DOC’s Transgender Toolkit for Incarcerated Persons and DOC’s Guide for Transgender, Intersex, Non-binary Individuals in DOC Custody. If you would like a hard copy of either publication, you may request them from your classification counselor, the patient care navigator, and mental health staff. Both publications can also be found on your DOC tablet. You can also refer to your tablet to find DOC policies including Transgender, Intersex, and/or Non-Binary Individuals (DOC 490.700), Legal Name Change (DOC 400.280), Searches of Incarcerated Individuals (DOC 420.310), and the Guidelines for Healthcare of Transgender Individuals. Below is quick information about whom to contact in DOC for some common concerns folks are having.
Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) and Hormone Monitoring: For issues related to initiating HRT or monitoring HRT (ordering labs, discussing goal ranges, etc.), kite or kiosk the Gender-Affirming Medical Specialist (GAMS). This person is currently Dr. Peck. For refills, contact nursing. It is your responsibility to notify nursing when you need a refill.
Gender-Affirming Surgeries and Other Treatments (Including Electrolysis, Voice Therapy and More): Concerns or questions relating to gender-affirming surgeries and other treatments can be directed to the patient care navigator or GAMS, who is currently Dr. Peck.
Gender-Affirming Mental Health Care: Each major prison has a designated Gender Affirming Mental Health Specialist (GAMHS) that you may contact. If you are not in a major prison and would like to speak with a Gender-Affirming Mental Health Specialist, contact your facility mental health provider and request that a telehealth appointment be scheduled.
Gender-Affirming Property (Including Clothing, Bras, Gaffs, and Underwear): Ask your classification counselor, CUS, GAMHS, or patient care navigator to learn who is responsible for gender-affirming property at your facility (it is often the Property Sergeant). For issues or concerns relating to gender-affirming property not being addressed by your facility, you may contact the HQ Transgender Housing and Program Manager, who is currently Michel Simmons. Reach them by kiosk under gender services or send them a kite.
Gender-Affirming Housing Review and Transfer: At the facility level, you may contact your classification counselor. For issues or concerns relating to gender-affirming housing reviews, you may contact the HQ Transgender Housing and Program Manager, currently Michel Simmons. Reach them by kiosk under gender services or send them a kite.
Cross-Gender Strip- and Pat-Down Searches: For issues and concerns related to what you believe to be an improper cross-gender strip- or pat-down search, you should file a resolution request/grievance and pursue all available appeals through that process.
Additional Self-Help Tips: Consider the following to help resolve issues inside DOC:
- Make an informal request for what you are seeking. Speak up and raise an issue with the appropriate staff listed above.
- Submit a kite or use the kiosk. Be specific about the problem you are having AND the solution you want. Cite relevant language in DOC policy, the toolkit, or guide for transgender incarcerated people. If you are unsure whom to contact, refer to this publication, the toolkit, and guide. If you are still unsure, ask your classification counselor or the HQ Transgender Housing and Program Manager.
- Use the resolution program to submit a grievance if kites do not resolve your issue. Describe the problem you are having, the solution you want, and relevant language in DOC policy, the toolkit, or guide. Use the DOC resolution program manual on your tablet for information to help you submit a successful grievance.
- Exhaust appeals of your grievance if you are dissatisfied with the response you receive. You may have better success in a Level III grievance response at HQ than the response you receive in your facility, and it is important for HQ to know about local concerns.
- Contact the Office of Corrections Ombuds (OCO) for additional help including possible individual assistance. The OCO is responsible for investigating complaints and ensuring that DOC is complying with its policies and procedures.
Office of the Corrections Ombuds
PO BOX 40009
Olympia, WA 98504
(360) 664-4749
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This information is current as of November 2023. The following federal funding partner shared in the cost of producing this material: the Rehabilitation Services Administration, RSA (H240A240048). These contents are the sole responsibility of Disability Rights Washington and do not necessarily represent the official views of RSA.
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