“It’s hard enough for the people doing the work to access these services”: Sexual Healthcare Barriers that LGBTQ2S+ Populations Experience in a Rural Canadian Community

Abstract

Despite Canada’s universal healthcare system, there exist numerous barriers that prevent LGBTQ2S+ populations from accessing healthcare services such as sexual health. Through pulling from community-based research principles and utilizing a critical social science framework, this research explores the availability and accessibility of sexual health services for LGBTQ2S+ individuals living in a rural Ontario community. After extensive consultations with multiple key informants, two focus groups were conducted with individuals from a community-based collaborative where members had the dual role of being service providers and community members. It is important to note that gaining access to the collaborative was made possible due to the resources and networks provided by the AIDS Network, a community charitable organization. Using a thematic analysis of the data, three major themes surfaced: the negative effects of heteronormativity, queerphobia, and transphobia within healthcare settings; barriers to accessing sexual healthcare; and community responses and strategies. These findings are reflected in the literature concerning issues of healthcare access for LGBTQ2S+ populations, but these research findings are unique given they are specific to both sexual health and rural communities. Implications for social work education, practice, and research include tapping into the potential of collaboratives; creating LGBTQ2S+-specific policies; making space for community voices, especially within academia; and recommendations for healthcare providers.