Training to Raise Awareness and Inclusion of Transgender

<< Background >>The TRAIT (Training to Raise Awareness and Inclusion of Transgender) project was designed in response to the urgent need to improve access to and quality of health and legal services for transgender and intersex persons (TI persons) in Europe. An initial analysis showed that these people face high levels of discrimination, social exclusion, violence and secondary victimisation across European countries, often due to a lack of education and cultural sensitivity among the professionals who provide them with assistance – doctors, psychotherapists, judges and lawyers. At the same time, there was a lack of systematic, European-recognised training in vocational education and training (VET) for working with this target group.The TRAIT project therefore sought to create an interdisciplinary and international training model for professionals who provide assistance to TI individuals, with the aim of strengthening their knowledge, empathy and communication skills, contributing to the elimination of stereotypes and increasing overall cultural competence in health and legal services.<< Objectives >>The aim of the TRAIT project was to develop and validate an interdisciplinary training model that improves the professional competence of healthcare and legal professionals in working with transgender and intersex (TI) people. The project sought to improve access to services, eliminate discrimination and create an empathetic and informed environment for TI clients.Specific objectives included:– strengthening the knowledge and skills of professionals in the field of LGBTQ+ issues,– creating training modules for the transferability of learning outcomes,– reducing secondary victimisation, stereotypes and prejudices against TI persons,– raising public awareness of the needs of the LGBTQ+ community.The project also strengthened the network between healthcare, legal and educational institutions and supported the creation of structured training that can be used in other European contexts in the long term.<< Implementation >>The TRAIT project implemented a comprehensive set of activities at both national and international levels. The key outputs were: the creation of a methodological framework, the development of educational materials, training of trainers, pilot courses in all partner countries supplemented by follow-up meetings, and the development of an open online educational platform MOOC with a cross-sectional module and modules for healthcare, legal and psychological professions. The courses were adapted to the local context and available in national languages and English. The project used blended learning and interactive methods (visualisation, case studies, metacommunication).An international dissemination conference and national workshops (4) were held to present the results to the public, attended by over 328 experts. A sustainable training model transferable to other European contexts was created.The activities included a systematic evaluation of three main components: the pilot course, ToT and the MOOC online learning platform. The evaluation focused on the comprehensibility, usability and usefulness of the training materials, with an emphasis on the ability to break down prejudices and improve the communication skills of participants<< Results >>The TRAIT project has produced four key outputs:1. A methodological framework and teaching strategy that sets out the principles of trans-inclusive education and serves as a basis for adaptation in both formal and informal education.2. A set of educational modules (cross-sectional, medical, legal, psychological), created in five language versions (CZ, ES, IT, SK, EN), supplemented by methodological guidelines for trainers, teaching materials and verified in pilot courses. 3. MOOC platform – a publicly accessible e-learning tool for professionals with more than 400 registered users.4. A set of evaluation tools for measuring the impact of training and collecting feedback.Other results included:– training of trainers within the ToT programme,– organization of 4 national workshops and an international conference,– wide dissemination including newsletters, professional articles, media outputs, videos and podcasts,– creation of professional networks and recommendations for putting the outputs into practice.