Study on rights, experiences of intersex persons completed

As part of the implementation of the National Action Plan on Fundamental and Human Rights, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs commissioned a qualitative study on the rights and experiences of intersex persons.

The purpose of the study was to find out how the decisions made when an intersex child is born and the treatments the child receives in childhood and adolescence have affected their lives, said an official press release.

The study examines the experiences of intersex persons and the parents of intersex children in the Finnish healthcare system and society. In addition, the study also surveys what kind of information and support the parents of intersex children were offered and what kind of information and support they feel is needed.

The report presents good practices for taking intersex children into consideration in early childhood education and care, schools, leisure activities and healthcare.

The qualitative study is based on the interviews and web survey responses of 12 intersex persons and six parents of intersex children.

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics that do not fit the typical definitions for male or female. Being intersex is a naturally occurring variation in humans. Estimates of the share of intersex persons in the population vary from 0.02% to 1.7%.