Oftentimes, this is the question that comes to mind- does one have to go to a psychiatrist, won’t a clinical psychologist work to get HRT ? Well, the answer is yes! A clinical psychologist would do the job.
Clinical Psychologist vs Psychiatrist: What’s the difference?
The basic difference between a psychiatrist and a psychologist is that a psychiatrist has availed a medical degree and so they can give you medicines but a psychologist focuses on therapeutic approaches so they will talk to you and try to solve your problems that way. The approach then is different.
Does it matter?
It doesn’t matter who you are going to. It is a matter of your own choice. For a Gender Dysphoria Certificate, you don’t really need any medications so it isn’t a norm to go to a psychiatrist. For you to get a GD certificate you will have to explain your issues with gender incongruence in detail to the psychiatrist or clinical psychologist you are referring to.
What if the Clinical Psychologist denies it?
Many a time, the clinical psychologist will tell you that they aren’t sure how to go about this and so they will refer you to a psychiatrist. In that case, you can just talk to the psychiatrist and get the referral.
What about Psychiatrists?
Because of differences in approach, it is possible that the psychiatrist you go to gives you an opinion and then sends you to a clinical psychologist to make the decision better. They will ask you to talk to the clinical psychologist to ensure that the opinion that they have given is right and there is no other issue that they are missing out on.
What Dr Kalra said
“It can be a clinical psychologist or a psychiatrist. Many a time, clinical psychologists aren’t sure so then we do a psychiatrist referral. But in some places, the psychiatrist gives an opinion and the clinical psychologist also talks to the patient to make the decision better. Because the patient should not regret it later, that is very important. Because many a time there are possibilities that we may not be able to make the correct diagnosis, even the patient cant make the right diagnosis. So it is not wrong that the clinical psychologist requires a psychiatric consultation. But for official purposes either one works. Sometimes the clinical psychologist isn’t very sure and that’s why they ask for a psychiatric referral. It’s okay because then it is always good that we do the right diagnosis and the right treatment.”