The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) has responded to news of a review to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital (WCH) gender clinic, warning the move does not go far enough to protect vulnerable children.
ACL’s South Australian Director, Ashlyn Vice, said the review is a “very small step forward” in light of troubling reports that 22 children were placed on a medicalised gender pathway without undergoing psychiatric assessment.
“We must be clear the core issue in SA’s gender clinic is not a mere failure of process. These are serious, irreversible interventions with almost no safety data, and they should not be prescribed to children under any circumstances.”
“The proposed review to ensure practices adhere to current guidelines—which are fundamentally flawed by the affirmation model—will do little to protect vulnerable children, as it still permits the prescription of harmful gender medications.”
Vice questioned the safety and scientific evidence-base of the treatments being administered under an “affirmation” model, which remains embedded in the current South Australian Standards of Care.
“What other area of medicine fast-tracks children onto experimental drugs with life-altering consequences—especially when there is no solid evidence base and no long-term safety data?” Vice asked. “Why are we testing our actions against guidelines that are shaped by ideology rather than science?”
ACL is calling for a ban on the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones in minors, citing growing international concern over their long-term effects.
“Children cannot give informed consent to interventions that impact their fertility, brain development, sexual function, and permanent physical presentation,” Vice said. “This review must be broadened to consider not just compliance with local standards, but the actual long-term outcomes for the children involved.”
ACL volunteers across South Australia have been actively raising community awareness of the dangers of gender-affirming care in children, including through distributing thousands of leaflets to homes statewide.
“It’s not enough to tweak the process—we must confront the harm at the heart of this ideology,” Vice concluded.
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