A paediatric gender clinic that described itself as “gold standard” has been savaged in a damning report that found it was offering walk-in appointments to children without specialist referrals and prescribing puberty blockers in the absence of appropriate clinical assessment.

The investigation launched into the Cairns Sexual Health Service (CSHS) also concluded that some children were being prescribed puberty blockers and cross-sex hormone therapy without being properly assessed for Gillick competency. 

Concerns about the care being offered at the service led the Queensland Government last year to ban public clinics from initiating puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for under-18s, a directive that will now remain in place until 2031.

The report was published last week and exposed multiple failings.