Surgeon Brothers Offering Transgender Surgery At Thousand Oaks Practice
The brothers are not the only plastic surgeons in Southern California or even Ventura County that perform top surgery. But the number is limited with one doctor citing the small size of the transgender community and another pointing to the behavioral health component of gender procedures.
Ventura County Star:
Transgender Surgery In Thousand Oaks Aimed At Confirming Identity
Dr. Gil Kryger and his older brother, Zol, perform about 150 operations a year in which they remove the breasts of patients who were born female but think of themselves as male. Once labeled gender reassignment, doctors and advocates now tag it as gender confirmation. ... From either side of an operating table, the brother plastic surgeons perform an outpatient procedure that takes two hours, leaving a flattened chest, lifelong implications that will always spark debate and, for many, a clearer sense of identity. (Kisken, 7/15)
In other news from across the state —
The Press Democrat:
Sonoma County Mental Health Advocates Watching Federal Bill
According to its supporters, the new legislation — quietly making its way through Congress — would take steps toward bringing some of the nation’s mental health laws in line with current science and medical knowledge. The bill, called the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, would begin to overhaul a mental health system whose services many criticize as being too little too late. (Espinoza, 7/17)
Ventura County Star:
Free Clinic Of Simi Valley Says It Did Nothing Improper With $50K Grant
The Free Clinic of Simi Valley says it did nothing improper with a $50,000 grant that is part of a criminal investigation into possible embezzlement from the Simi Valley Community Foundation's Under One Roof project. In announcing the Ventura County District Attorney's investigation Tuesday, Jarrod DeGonia, chairman of the foundation's board, said the Community Development Block Grant to the clinic "was of concern." (Harris, 7/15)
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
Kaiser Grant Promotes Health In Lemon Grove
A group that works to promote healthy eating habits and active living in Lemon Grove has received a $1 million grant from Kaiser Permanente. The nonprofit Community Health Improvement Partners, which collaborates with Lemon Grove’s HEAL Zone, was presented with the check from Kaiser on Thursday to continue the partnership. (Pearlman, 7/15)
Oakland Tribune:
South Bay Teens Spent A Week 'Designing The Future'
Four local teens were able to put their problem-solving skills to the test to better the lives of people with physical disabilities. ..."Design the Future is a one-week design thinking program that teaches high school students how to design and solve problems for individuals with physical disabilities," program creator Durell Coleman said. "We tell students that they can change the world all the time, but we don't show them how." The program is in its second year and was held at the Stanford Institute of Design. (Myllenbeck, 7/15)