CHARLOTTE ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) — For most people, making a doctor’s appointment is an easy task. But for others, finding a relatable provider can be challenging.
“I, in particular, wanted a therapist who identified as a black, cisgender male and a member of the LGBTQ community,” said Mel Johnson-Norwood. “Now people in the counseling field will tell you that you’re looking for a unicorn at that point. And I did not realize that.”
When LGBTQ2+ people are part of other marginalized groups, like people of color or disabled, it becomes that much harder to find an accessible, non-biased provider.
“In talking to some of our friends, we found out that they, too, were interested in that same type of health network but could not find it,” Mel said.
For Mel and Frankie Johnson Norwood, intersectionality was important.
“When you feel that mental health and just having counseling is important, you want someone to understand us,” Frankie said. “Because sometimes they can try to empathize. But until you walk in my shoes and put on the skin, you don’t know what it is to be a black gay male in society.”
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Mental health counselor Heather Tidwell with B&G counseling services says having a relatable mental and physical health network aids in immediate connection and raises the level of vulnerability, paving the way for better care.
“When I have somebody from that community reach out to me, I want to make sure, one, I’m acknowledging them and I’m affirming them and just letting them know, ‘Thank you so much for giving me a call. I know this could be a really difficult step. This is something to be really proud of . . . Share with me what are your needs’ and kind of making sure that they know they are the expert on that . . . right away,” Tidwell said.
In 2016, the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities identified the LGBTQ2+ community as a “health disparity population” partly because of lowered healthcare access.
“Evidence suggests that around 30–40% of LGBTIQQ patients in the past year have experienced some sort of discrimination in the health system based on their sexual orientation or gender identity,” said Novant Health’s medical director of LGBTQ2+ services, Dr. Cramer McCullen.
That disparity pushed him specifically into LGBTIQQ medicine and trans health.
Growing up in Charlotte, McCullen often found himself educating his doctors about his health needs.
“We’re talking about gay men in particular, for example, we know there are higher rates of HIV in the community. And in this day and age, there are a lot of medical treatments and medical prevention options for patients to try to prevent people from getting infected with HIV or other sexually transmitted infections,” Dr. McCullen said.
Man accused of raping, killing Charlotte woman posts bond within 24 hours Within the past decade, three new HIV prevention medications called PrEP have hit the market. But many doctors aren’t knowledgeable or don’t feel comfortable prescribing it.
As an LGBTIQQ specialist, McCullen can manage the care for those patients. The 2023 monkeypox epidemic is an example of why a suitable health network is important.
“There was a lot of effort in larger cities and coordinating with the health departments to make sure that people who qualified for the vaccine were able to get it and people that needed treatment were able to get the care quickly. And I think that’s why we saw the infection rates curve so quickly. Now we have seen a small increase in cases over the past six months or so, but nothing like we saw years ago. And currently, we have good systems in place to be able to connect patients to that care,” McCullen said.
“That was very beneficial, having a primary care provider who understood why we needed it. And again, that’s even that relationship where I could be honest with my health care provider and say, hey, I’m traveling to this event, and this is what the event will look like. And because of that, I want to make sure that I’m protected,” Mel said.
Now, Mel is one semester away from finishing a master’s degree in rehabilitation and clinical mental health counseling. By December, he’ll be the unicorn he once was looking for.
“I know that many of us are still coping with and trying to adapt to this world that we live in. And there are a number of things that we need to unpack as members of the lgbtq community,” Mel said.
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