terns. As many as 1 in 100 babies fall into this category.
• Lesbian A term describing women who are sexually and/or
romantically attracted to women only.
• LGBTQIA2S+ An acronym for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Transgender, Queer/
Questioning, Intersexed, Allies and Two Spirits.
• Pansexual A person who is attracted to individuals regardless
of their sex or gender.
• Polysexual A person who is oriented toward sexual encounters
and relationships involving more than 2 people.
• Queer Once a slur, this often serves as an umbrella word to
describe everyone who diverges from hetero- and homonorma-
tive genders and sexualities. Individuals may also hold this as an
individual identity, and often ascribe some political beliefs to it.
• Questioning A person who feels they don't fit into any one clas-
sification system.
• Sex assigned at birth Usually male or female (sometimes inter-
sex), noted by a medical professional on the birth
certificate.
• Transgender or Trans A person whose gender identity differs from
social expectations connected to the sex they were assigned at birth.
• Transsexual An outdated word still used occasionally by some
individuals. Use transgender as an umbrella term and only use
this term if someone uses it for themselves.
• Two-Spirit An indigenous North American who embodies a gen-
der(s) outside of cisgender, and/or sexual orientation outside of het-
erosexuality. Traditionally, some tribes view these individuals as
healers or leaders.
— Shanna K. Kattari, PhD, MEd, CSE, ACS
4 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 9
