Internet-Based Psychological Assessment and Intervention During the COVID-19 Pandemic With an Adolescent Transgender Patient – A Case Report

Abstract

In this report, a case of a 17,2-year-old male to female patient with gender dysphoria and autism spectrum disorder, who received an internet-based psychological assessment and intervention during the COVID-19-pandemic, is described. The patient started the assessment process in order to get medical treatment for gender dysphoria prior to the outbreak of the pandemic in Austria. As face-to-face appointments could no longer take place due to the government measures, the patient experienced significant distress and anxiety regarding her expected progress in the transition process. In order to reduce the distress of the patient an internet-based psychological assessment and intervention via Instahelp was offered, to which the patient gave consent. The patient found the intervention helpful, emphasizing that it helped her a lot to get through this difficult time with many uncertainties. The case study provides a good example of a possible transition for at least some parts of the face-to-face psychological assessment to internet-based assessment for similar situations in the future.