Abstract
As we finalize our second issue of Menopause International, we continue to be struck by the vastness of the subject which is quite simply described as ‘menopause’. With articles ranging from the hot flush, oophorectomy, the menopausal bladder, menopause and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) after gynaecological cancer and vaginal atrophy, to vaginismus and an unusual cause of premature ovarian failure, and with many varied papers ready or in progress for future issues, it is very clear that ‘menopause’ encompasses issues that should be of interest to health-care professionals who work across many disciplines. Gone are the days when ‘menopause’ was mostly associated with the merits of HRT and indeed, the British Menopause Society was often referred to as an ‘HRT society’. Those of us working in the field would usually prefer to be referred to as ‘Menopause Specialists’, rather than ‘HRT Specialists’, and yet, with the previously established association and then the worldwide adverse publicity surrounding HRT, it seems that many have not only lost interest in HRT, but also in menopause.
It remains a simple, but accurate fact that every woman will become menopausal and is subject to the vast range of consequences of estrogen deficiency. Whether or not HRT is used to combat these consequences is an individual decision, but it behoves us as health-care professionals who have continued to appreciate the importance of menopause to encourage wider learning, realization, interest and research, not only among our immediate colleagues, but among our trainees, medical students, allied health-care professional colleagues, hospital colleagues, primary care colleagues and, of course, patients.
In these challenging financial times, health-care providers will be under pressure to find ways of reigning in expenditure. We all need to make sure that women with menopausal problems remain a population that receive high-quality and appropriately funded care. For menopause to remain high on the agenda of whoever the new government decides will commission services, our patients will need to have a loud voice to remain heard and those of us who provide care for menopausal women will need to be ready to get involved in helping commissioners to be aware of the services we provide.
Spread the word and let the importance of menopause be realized once again.