Johanna Olson-Kennedy, MD

Medical Director, The Center for Transyouth Health and Development

Attending Physician

Investigator, Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine and Behavioral Health

Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine of USC

Johanna Olson-Kennedy, MD is an Adolescent Medicine physician specializing in the care of gender non-conforming children and transgender youth. Board certified in Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Dr. Olson-Kennedy has been providing medical intervention for transgender youth and young adults including puberty suppression and cross sex hormones for the past 16 years, and is considered a national expert in this area. She is the Medical Director of The Center for Transyouth Health and Development at Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, the largest transgender youth clinic in the United States. Dr. Olson-Kennedy is a Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine at USC.

Clinical Interests

Gender non-conforming children, transgender adolescents and young adults

Education

Medical School

Chicago Medical School

Internship

Children's Hospital of Orange County

Residency

Children's Hospital of Orange County

Fellowship

Children's Hospital Los Angeles

Accomplishments

Certifications

Adolescent Medicine 2003, 2013

Professional Memberships

Society for Pediatric Research, World Professional Association for Transgender Health, Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine

Awards

The Champion Award - The Division of Adolescent Medicine; CHAMPION FUND 5000 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles

Recognition Award for Outstanding, Compassionate and Innovative Service - SoCal Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine Regional Chapter, Los Angeles

Anne Marie Staas Ally Award - Stonewall Democratic Club; 1049 Havenhurst Drive #325, West Hollywood

Extraordinary Service Award - Equality California, 202 W 1st St., Suite 3-0130 Los Angeles

Clinical Research Academic Career Development Award - Saban Research Center TSRI Program: Community Health Outcomes and Intervention, Los Angeles

Health Care Advocacy Champion - Democratic Advocates for Disability Issues, Los Angeles

Publications

Olson-Kennedy J, Mental Health Disparities Among Transgender Youth: Rethinking the Role of Professionals, JAMA Pediatr. 2016 May 1;170(5):423-4. doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2016.0155

Olson-Kennedy J, Cohen-Kettenis P. T., Kreukels B.P.C, Meyer-Bahlburg H.F.L, Garofalo R, Meyer W, Rosenthal S.M., Research Priorities for Gender Nonconforming/Transgender Youth: Gender Identity Development and Biopsychosocial Outcomes, Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2016 Apr;23(2):172-9. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000236.

Olson J, Forbes C, Belzer M. Management of the transgender adolescent. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2011 Feb;165(2):171-6. doi: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2010.275. Review. PubMed PMID: 21300658.

Olson J, Garofalo R. 2014. The peripubertal gender-dysphoric child: puberty suppression and treatment paradigms. Pediatr Ann. 43(6):e132-7. doi: 10.3928/00904481-20140522-08.

Olson J, Schrager S, Belzer M, Simons L*, Clark L. Baseline physiologic and psychosocial characteristics of transgender youth seeking care for gender dysphoria. Journal of Adolescent Health, July 2015 doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.04.027

Olson J, Schrager S M., Clark L F., Dunlap S L., Belzer M. Subcutaneous testosterone: an effective delivery mechanism for masculinizing young transgender men, LGBT Health. September 2014, 1(3): 165-167. doi:10.1089/lgbt.2014.0018.

Schrager SM, Olson J, Beharry M, Belzer M, Goldsich K, Desai M, Clark LF. Young men and the morning after: a missed opportunity for emergency contraception provision? 2014. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care. doi: 10.1136/jfprhc-2013-100617. [Epub ahead of print]

Belzer ME, Naar-King S, Olson J, Sarr M, Thornton S, Kahana SY, Gaur AH, Clark LF; Adolescent Medicine Trials Network for HIV/AIDS Interventions. The use of cell phone support for non-adherent HIV-infected youth and young adults: an initial randomized and controlled intervention trial. 2014. AIDS Behav. 18(4):686-96. doi: 10.1007/s10461-013-0661-3.

Simons L, Schrager SM, Clark LF, Belzer M, Olson J. Parental support and mental health among transgender adolescents. 2013. J Adolesc Health. 53(6):791-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2013.07.019. Epub 2013 Sep 4.

Lujan-Zilbermann J, Warshaw MG, Williams PL, Spector SA, Decker MD, Abzug MJ, Heckman B, Manzella A, Kabat B, Jean-Philippe P, Nachman S, Siberry GK; International Maternal Pediatric Adolescent AIDS Clinical Trials Group P1065 Protocol Team. Immunogenicity and safety of 1 vs 2 doses of quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine in youth infected with human immunodeficiency virus. 2012. J Pediatr. 161(4):676-81.e2. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2012.04.005. Epub 2012 May 22.

Publications on PubMed

Research

Transgender children and adolescents are a poorly understood and a distinctly understudied population in the United States. The limited available data suggest that transgender youth who are gender dysphoric (persistently distressed about gender incongruence) are at increased risk for negative mental and medical health outcomes including anxiety, depression, HIV acquisition, suicide, and substance use compared to their peers. Therefore, medical intervention is aimed at alleviating gender dysphoria and ameliorating potential negative outcomes.

Johanna Olson-Kennedy, MD, Medical Director of the Center for Transyouth Health and Development at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, works closely with gender nonconforming children and adolescents to find ways to help them thrive.

Visit the Olson-Kennedy Laboratory.