The Full Picture: Gender’s Role in Modern Mental Health Treatment

Available with English captions and subtitles in Spanish.

Discover how gender expectations and bias influence mental health diagnosis and treatment, and how clinicians can respond with inclusion and awareness.

Why This Training Matters

Understanding gender’s influence on mental health is not optional—it’s essential.

This recorded training invites clinicians, educators, and advocates to explore gender through an evidence-based, compassionate lens that broadens understanding and improves outcomes for all.

What You’ll Learn

  • How gender identity and expression affect help-seeking and care experiences
  • Common gender-related biases that appear in diagnosis and treatment
  • Strategies to improve communication and therapeutic trust
  • Ways to affirm and support gender-diverse and nonconforming individuals

Who Should Watch

  • Mental health professionals (psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, counselors, and therapists)
  • Pediatricians and primary-care providers
  • K–12 and university educators and school staff
  • Public health professionals
  • Parents and caregivers
  • Community and faith leaders
  • Executives, managers, and HR professionals

Event Details

  • Date Recorded: September 12, 2025
  • Length: 60 minutes
  • Presenter: Roberto Olivardia, PhD

Watch this free, on-demand session and explore how gender awareness leads to better, more human-centered care.

Topics Covered During This Training

  • What important things should new doctors know about how gender affects mental health treatment?
  • How does caring for nonbinary or gender-nonconforming people differ from following traditional gender roles?
  • How do society’s ideas about being masculine or feminine change how doctors treat patients?
  • How do cultural ideas about gender affect whether patients want to talk about emotions and mental health?
  • How has thinking about gender in mental health changed over the years you’ve been working?
  • Do standard mental health tests make gender bias better or worse?
  • Which mental health conditions get diagnosed too much or too little because of gender assumptions?
  • How do multiple aspects of a person’s identity, including gender, affect diagnosis and treatment?
  • How would you explain gender diversity in today’s mental health practice?
  • What unfair treatment do transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive people face most often in health care?
  • What real steps can new doctors take to make safe and welcoming spaces for gender-diverse patients?
  • How do you know if patients have the words to describe their gender experiences, and how do you help when they don’t?
  • How do you handle work situations where coworkers think differently about gender issues?
  • Do you think current training programs teach enough about both traditional gender issues and gender diversity?
  • Do you have advice for those living in less affirming locations who want to signal they are a safe space without putting themselves or patients in harm’s way?
  • What are the most important things you hope doctors will remember about gender in patient-centered care?

The information discussed is intended to be educational and should not be used as a substitute for guidance provided by your health care provider. Please consult with your treatment team before making any changes to your care plan.

Resources

You may also find this information useful:

About Dr. Olivardia

Roberto Olivardia, PhD, conducts diagnostic evaluations at The Pavilion at McLean Hospital and maintains a practice in Massachusetts, where he specializes in the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), as well as issues that face students with learning disabilities. He is a nationally recognized expert in eating disorders and body image issues in boys and men.

Topics