Great question, thank you SO much for asking and shining a light on this topic! I hope our explanation helps. If you ever have any further questions or advice for us, please feel free to share with our team. We love hearing questions such as this one, as it allows us an opportunity to explain.
In 1998, the Center for Young Women’s Health (CYWH) was created to meet the unmet needs of teens who identified as women. During this time, little to no digitized resources existed for young women seeking age-appropriate health information.
As the website has grown and evolved, we recognize that there are limitations to the naming “Center for Young Women’s Health”. However, since our core purpose is still to serve those who identify as young women (be it trans women, cis women, nonbinary women, intersex women, or identify with the community of women in some way) — the naming will remain. We recognize this decision does not mean the site will be a place where all people feel comfortable receiving information.
That being said, we recognize the need for a more inclusive website, especially for trans youth. We are hopeful that in the future we will be able to create such a space. In the meantime, we will continue to adapt our current materials to utilize more inclusive language, while simultaneously growing our LGBTQ+ materials.
Our health guides are developed through a systematic, rigorous process to ensure accuracy, reliability, and trustworthiness. Written and reviewed by experienced healthcare clinicians from Boston Children's Hospital, a Harvard Medical School teaching hospital and consistently ranked as a top hospital by Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report, these guides combine clinical expertise, specialized knowledge, and evidence-based medicine. We also incorporate research and best practices from authoritative sources such as the CDC, NIH, PubMed, top medical journals, and UpToDate.com. Clinical specialists and subject matter experts review and edit each guide, reinforcing our commitment to high-quality, factual, scientifically accurate health information for young people.