Pride BCN 2019: LGBTQ+ Community & Healthcare

What is Pride BCN?

Pride BCN is an event organized every year in Barcelona in order to celebrate Gay Pride and the LGBTQ+ Community. During the month of June and July, various festivities and events are organized by the city and ran throughout the streets. After a week, its closing celebration is a huge parade at the very end of June.

Pride Barcelona is an event for everyone. Whether it is those from Barcelona or those who have come to visit from all over the world. The event’s purpose is to come together and celebrate our differences. It is about realizing how deal with these differences in the right ways. As being unique individuals, there are many major general challenges we all tend to face at some point. Whether it is applying to a university, getting cut from a sports team, or not receiving a job, we have all been discriminated against in some way. 

Regardless of sexual orientation or gender roles, finding decent affordable health care is a major challenge for many people. Especially when abroad this can be difficult to find. Being LGBTQ+ can make it even harder. Many people in this community find it a struggle finding a healthcare provider they can trust for many reasons. 

How Doctors Barcelona Contributes to LGBTQ+ Health & Community

Many face discrimination or biases that should not be a problem, especially when it comes to your overall health. Your doctor’s office should be a safe space to talk about anything in order to take excellent care of you. This includes various aspects of your identity. Unfortunately, in many situations this is not the case. Sometimes this comes down to LGBTQ+ patients avoiding medical treatment due to fear of judgement from discrimination in the past. This results in a lack of medical treatment and overall health quality for this community. Finding accessible, non-biased care is difficult when LGBTQ+ people are also members of other marginalized groups, such as being a person of color or having a disability.

Barcelona has been making huge advancements in the LGBTQ+ community for years now. Today, it doesn’t stop when it comes to your health care. It is important to find a doctor that really wants to provide the best medical attention to their patients. This should always be regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. 

Here are some signs that doctors are committed to doing so:

• They ask what your pronouns are and use the correct ones.
• If they misuse your pronouns, they apologize and prevent it from happening again.
• They ask assumption-free questions. Instead of “Do you have a husband/wife?” they ask, “Are you in a relationship?” 
• They don’t assume things after you express your identity.
• If their body language/facial expressions is only in affirming ways, like nodding and smiling when you mention your identity.

Make a correction if your medical provider says something that makes you uncomfortable. You can speak up by saying something like, “As I mentioned, my pronouns are ‘they/them.’”

There are plenty of options at your disposal if you find a trustworthy doctor you want to stick with. Find a provider who treats you with the care you deserve. English speaking doctors in Barcelona are dedicated to creating an environment of inclusion, acceptance, and equality for patients. Doctors Barcelona are professionals whose patients and staff can turn to for support. They advocate for inclusive policies, create opportunities to build community, and lead educational efforts around LGBTQ+ health.