 The mother of a trans woman who died by suicide has said her death was 'preventable with access to the right support'. Alice Litman, 20, from Brighton, waited almost three years for gender-affirming healthcare. She was initially referred in 2019 to the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), an NHS health clinic that offers support for young trans people. After turning 18 while still on the waiting list for the GIDS the following year, Alice was referred to its adult counterpart, the Gender Identity Clinic (GIC). Alice died by suicide on May 26, 2022, aged 20, having waited 1,023 days for a first appointment. She was found suffering from multiple injuries on the Undercliff Walk, near Roedean School. The years of delays deepened the 'despair' Alice was suffering, her mum says (Picture: PA) Her family believe her wait for an initial assessment at an NHS gender clinic played a part in her death. At an inquest into Alice's death on Monday, mum Dr Caroline Litman said in a statement: 'I do not want any other transgender person to face a future with as much despair as Alice did. 'I do not want another parent to live the rest of their life with their child in a jar on the mantlepiece, instead of in their warm embrace. 'I believe Alice's death was preventable with access to the right support, and that change must happen.' The inquest at the Sussex County Cricket Ground in Hove heard how Alice, then 16, began showing signs of low mood and anxiety in early 2018. Seeing her GP before she came out as trans, Alice was told to play more football. Dr Litman feels her daughter's death was 'prevetanble' (Picture: PA) Dr Litman, a former NHS psychiatrist said: 'When we left the appointment Alice said to me: 'Please never make me see that doctor again.'' Alice was handed to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS)after a suicide attempt in June 2019, the inquest heard. In Au){kind=link}
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The mother of a trans woman who died by suicide has said her death was ‘preventable with access to the right support’.
Alice Litman, 20, from Brighton, waited almost three years for gender-affirming healthcare.
She was initially referred in 2019 to the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), an NHS health clinic that offers support for young trans people.
After turning 18 while still on the waiting list for the GIDS the following year, Alice was referred to its adult counterpart, the Gender Identity Clinic (GIC).