Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)

School

Public Health

Advisor

Vasileios Margaritis

Abstract

Historically, the transgender community has been treated and studied myopically, using the lens of psychological illness. As treatment and research efforts have expanded in the past decade, the transgender population is becoming better understood. The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between perceived health and preventative care in the transgender community. The health belief model was the theoretical framework for this cross-sectional study, which included data from the 2014–2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey. Chi-square tests and binomial logistic regressions were performed to investigate associations between perceived health and preventative care in the transgender community. The results revealed a significant association between the cisgender group and influenza vaccination status (p = .033) and between male to female (MtF) individuals and pneumonia vaccinations (OR = 2.231, 95% CI = 1.182-4.211), respectively. Further, chi-square results showed a significant association between female to male (FtM) individuals and the following diseases, arthritis (p = .001), depressive disorder (p = .009), and diabetes (p = .045). This project supports positive social change by helping healthcare professionals better understand the specific preventative healthcare needs in the subgroups of the transgender community and to design customized preventative programs for them.

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