Abby had never come out as transgender to any of her care providers before Jean Amoura, M.D.
“Dr. Amoura is one of the most compassionate, kind, caring people I’ve ever met, and she has a heart for people who are transgender,” said Abby, a patient at Dr. Amoura’s Transgender Specialty Care Clinic in Omaha near 52nd and Leavenworth. “You are on a journey and scared to death, and then you walk in . . . Dr. Amoura was open-armed, smiling, and happy for me. Her passion and love for transgender people is easily apparent. I love her so much.”
Despite the impact the clinic had for Abby, relatively few people know about it, said Angie Vasa, co-chair of the LGBTQ+ Employee Alliance, a UNMC/Nebraska Medicine group that strives to promote an accepting and diverse culture across the enterprise for all LGBTQ+ employees and allies. To mark today’s Transgender Day of Remembrance, which honors the memory of those whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence, clinic staff spoke with two patients about the clinic’s impact.
“We want to use this day of remembrance as an opportunity to bring more awareness about our local transgender community, and hopefully, to help encourage acceptance and kindness towards our fellow humans,” Vasa said.
“Dr. Amoura’s team at the clinic works with patients to understand how to help them become their best selves. Sometimes this includes medical care, to help patients transition physically so that their outsides match their insides, and other times the patients just want a physician that they can speak openly about their gender identity with.”
Jamie Shipman, a patient of Dr. Amoura, told her family that she was a girl at the age of three. Her family insisted she had a mental health disorder and forced her to live as a boy in spite of her insistence. Jamie spent most of her life struggling with her gender identity. At times, Shipman said, she was even suicidal as she faced what she saw as the “shame” of coming out to her family, including her two grown sons.
It was not until she found the Nebraska Medicine Transgender Clinic, Shipman said, that she was able to be her true self. She has been able to take hormones and have gender affirming surgery and, she said, her body finally feels like her own.
“I would rather be transgender any day than live as my gender assigned at birth,” Shipman said. “The worst day of my life as woman is far better than my best day as a man.”
Thanks Jean for all you do.
Great article. Thank you for all you do, Dr. Amoura & team!
I'm so glad to learn about this clinic and to know it's a resource for Nebraskans and others. Thank you!
Thank you, Dr. Amoura and team! Your work is vital and has changed the lives of many for the better.
I have so much love and appreciation for Dr. Amoura and those who work at the clinic. You have provided me with the best of care and I will forever be grateful for your commitment to validate my existence! Keep up the GREAT work!