Abstract
Last year we held our 25th annual British Menopause Society conference. Who would have thought back in 1989, when the Society was established, that it would be more than 20 years before menopause and post reproductive health attracted the formal attention it merited from the Department of Health. There is no doubt that 2015 was the most important year for the BMS because of the publication of the NICE Guideline, Menopause: diagnosis and management.
Appointed as chief executive of the society in 2007, I had had six years of solid experience when I applied to be a lay member of the Menopause Guideline Development Group (GDG) in 2013. The sheer scale and scope of this key area of women’s health took NICE by surprise. The volume of work over a period of two and a half years, both for the NICE team and we GDG members, took us all by surprise!
The GDG was led by Professor Mary Ann Lumsden, a former chairman of the Society (2009–2011). Her focus, clarity and objectivity set the tone for our work. Not since far-off student days have I been part of such an intense, challenging and stimulating project. The Society was, of course, well-represented, including specialist nurses Debby Holloway and Prue Neale, GPs Sally Hope and Imogen Shaw and gynaecologists Melanie Davies, Nick Panay (chairman 2011–2013) and Tony Parsons (founder chairman 1989–1991). Together with two other lay members, specialist representation included orthopaedics, cardiology, oncology, epidemiology and psychology. Our evidence-based methodology, ruthless examination and analysis meant that now, for the first time, there is clear and unbiased guidance for healthcare professionals and women alike.
As members of the British Menopause Society, you have a dedicated interest in post reproductive health. Regrettably, a significant number of our professional colleagues do not. After consultation and research, the board and medical advisory council concluded that the most effective way to help change this situation was to provide accessible information about the menopause.
So, we engaged Edelman UK and have developed a PR campaign with the aim of catching the attention of women. This campaign is a key factor in helping to ensure that women receive information, education, advice and options. It will enable them to choose, with their GP, the best management of their menopausal symptoms and their post reproductive health. As most British women can expect to live for 30 years or more beyond menopause, the consequences for immediate and longer term healthcare and lifestyle are significant. Most women appear to have little awareness or understanding of this reality.
Our campaign includes an IPSOS MORI Did you know …? survey, media articles and interviews, literature, factsheets and infographics that will culminate in a press launch at the annual BMS conference, NICE Menopause Guideline: from publication to practice which takes place at the Royal College of Physicians in London on Thursday 19 May.