This Transgender Awareness Week (13th-19th November), we spoke with Ruy Jardin, a neuro theatre nurse at The Walton Centre in Liverpool, about her journey, her work in healthcare, and the importance of creating inclusive and respectful environments for transgender patients and colleagues.

Ruy, 41, was born in Cebu, in the Philippines, one of five children. After studying nursing at university, she began her career in intensive care before moving to South America to work in open heart surgery. Her nursing journey then took her to the Bahamas, where she continued to develop her skills in theatre nursing.

Her time in the Bahamas, however, was far from easy. In addition to facing Hurricane Dorian, one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever to strike the islands, Ruy also experienced a challenging social climate, describing it as “very homophobic”.

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit and theatre work was suspended, Ruy was redeployed to the emergency department. These experiences ultimately led her to seek a new beginning in the UK, where she joined the Countess of Chester Hospital as a theatre nurse in October 2021.

After three-and-a-half years, Ruy moved to The Walton Centre, a leading specialist neurology hospital in Liverpool, where she now works as a neuro theatre nurse.

“The team at the Walton Centre has been very supportive,” she says with a huge smile. “I’m so glad for everyone here, they’ve been very nice, very inclusive.”

Living authentically

Ruy shared that she was born a boy, Roy, but knew from a very young age that her identity didn’t align with the gender she was assigned at birth.

“I think I knew when I was about four,” she recalls. “I wanted to wear blouses, and I was attracted to my male classmates, not girls, but I never opened up about it. In the Philippines, it just wasn’t something people talked about.”

It took time, courage, and reflection before Ruy decided to begin her transition.

“I gave myself space,” she says, adding: “I’ve only just recently started the process.”

Now pre-operative and on hormone replacement therapy since last year, Ruy says she finally feels more at peace.

“I was never happy wearing male clothes. I wasn’t attracted to girls. It all felt like a trap. Now, I feel like I can finally be myself.”

Ruy says she feels deeply grateful to her colleagues and the Liverpool gender clinic for their kindness and support.

“Sometimes I want to cry when I think about how accepting people have been,” she says. “After years of being judged, insulted, or misgendered, to finally be treated with respect, it means everything.”

Creating inclusive healthcare

For Ruy, Transgender Awareness Week is more than a week of recognition; it’s a vital opportunity for education, empathy, and open dialogue.

“It’s all about building understanding and reflection,” she explains. “Removing hate, confusion, and ignorance. It’s about opening people’s eyes and learning to treat each other the same, as human beings. We need to live in peace.”

Ruy believes that awareness and clear healthcare guidelines are essential for both patients and staff.

“Transgender patients can feel very anxious coming into hospital, and anxiety is not good before surgery,” she says.

“It’s important that teams are aware of this and help to make patients feel safe and supported.”

She also hopes to see more transgender healthcare professionals joining the workforce.

“Healthcare can start by hiring transgender staff and consulting with them,” she suggests. “As far as I know, I’m the only transgender member of theatre staff at the Walton Centre. But I feel very welcomed and supported, and I want to use my experience to help others.”

A message of kindness and hope

Looking to the future, Ruy and her partner Joshua hope to have children together using a surrogate and Ruy’s stored sperm from before her transition. For now though, she remains focused on her work and on raising awareness within healthcare.

Her message is clear and deeply moving: “In a world filled with confusion, let’s choose kindness, we have nothing to lose by being kind. Through kindness, we nurture love, create positivity, and build acceptance. As a transgender person, I also urge my fellow trans community members to take on the gentle responsibility of educating others about how we wish to be seen, loved, and respected. Together, we can help a compassionate world flourish.”

Ruy’s story is one of courage, resilience, and compassion, a reminder that inclusion begins with understanding and that every person deserves to feel seen, respected, and safe in healthcare and beyond.