New Delhi/Noida: Every year Delhi is covered in rainbows. Connaught Place is vibrant with thousands marching in the Pride parade, university campuses raising queer flags and queer university collectives hosting open mic nights where the love is loud and fearless. For a few glittering weeks, the city feels like it has finally arrived: young, liberal and tolerant. But the moment a transgender person gets sick and walks through the gates of a hospital, the same city that cheered them on the streets suddenly forgets their name.
Within these wards, rainbow stickers give way to staring nurses, sneering attendants and doctors who refuse to be touched or charge three times what they charge, as if the pride that brightly painted Delhi never quite reached the corridors where lives are saved. A world celebrates her; right next door humiliates her. The parade ends, but the cruelty does not. Members of the transgender community claim Discrimination and neglect in hospitals despite government initiatives that promise inclusive healthcare.
Transgender Health Care: Affordability and Biases
From affordability barriers to everyday biases in clinics, many say medical treatment in Delhi often comes at the expense of their dignity. While the specialized transgender clinic at Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital in Delhi offers hormone therapy and counseling, access remains limited. Some are not aware of this, others are afraid of discrimination.
(Image credit: Ayat Adil)
For Ruchchi, 29, a transgender woman and dancer who performs at weddings and local events, access to health care has been fraught with rejection and humiliation. “When I went to a private hospital after testing positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), they refused to pursue my case, citing gender identity issues. Then, at another hospital, they charged another Rs 90,000 for medicines and hospital equipment, money I could never afford. I felt helpless and unwanted everywhere,” said Ruchchi, who goes by her first name.
With limited acceptance in mainstream hospitals, many people rely on alternatives to meet basic health needs. For minor illnesses or hormonal problems, they often visit RML’s transgender clinic or seek help at community-run facilities.
After being denied treatment at both hospitals, she finally found help at RML Hospital’s transgender clinic. “When I visited RML Hospital, everything was different. They treated me with respect, gave me free medicines, counseled me and cared for me without any judgment, so to speak. They didn’t care about who I was in terms of my gender identity,” she said. “They also have gender-neutral restrooms, which may seem like a small thing, but for people like me, it makes for a safe and comfortable space.”
The Intersecting Burden of Poverty and Stigma
Emmanuiel Francis, 33, a transgender woman who works in a private company in Noida in Uttar Pradesh, said affordability and stigma remained major obstacles. “At a private clinic near my home, the doctor used an oxygen monitor and a blood pressure monitor on me but refused to use the same on another patient and treated the machines as if they were contaminated after using them on me,” she said.
Another transgender woman, Aasha, 39, stressed that discrimination becomes harsher when poverty and gender identity go together. “If you’re both poor and transgender, it’s even worse,” notes Aasha, who works as a dancer. “Hospitals see us as outsiders, not as patients.”
To bridge this gap, many NGOs are conducting free HIV testing, providing mental health support and conducting awareness campaigns in areas like Mangolpuri and Sultanpuri in the state capital. But Maan believes that without institutional change, these efforts can only go so far.
With limited acceptance in mainstream hospitals, many people rely on alternatives to meet basic health needs. For minor illnesses or hormonal problems, they often visit RML’s transgender clinic or seek help from community-run facilities such as TWEET Foundation‘s Skilling Center, a nonprofit organization run by and for transgender people that provides free medication and counseling.
While some hospitals have opened their doors to transgender people, treatment often lacks respect and sensitivity.
“It’s not that we are not treated at all. But at what cost? Only after people humiliate us, make fun of us and laugh at us. Most of the time they don’t treat us like human beings,” said Kabir Maan, a transgender rights advocate who works with the TWEET Foundation Mitr Foundationanother organization that works for the welfare of the transgender community.
To bridge this gap, many NGOs are conducting free HIV testing, providing mental health support and conducting awareness campaigns in areas like Mangolpuri and Sultanpuri in the state capital. But Maan believes that without institutional changes, these efforts can only go so far.
Doctors at RML say the clinic has helped change attitudes on both sides. “When we opened the transgender clinic at RML two years ago, very few people came in because they were afraid of being judged or treated badly. But now things are changing. More and more transgender people are visiting us and they feel safer and more comfortable here,” said Dr. SN Deshpande from RML Hospital.
Dr. Deshpande added that the clinic also increased doctors’ understanding of the specific issues faced by the transgender community. “We have also learned a lot. It’s not just about them opening up, but also about us understanding them better. We are all human beings and everyone deserves care and respect,” he said.
Until every hospital in the city treats a transgender person with the same respect as any other patient, major policies will remain just ink on paper. The fight is not just about free medicines or a specialty clinic in Delhi; It’s about the fundamental human truth that no one has to beg to be seen as human while fighting for their life.