Fund menopause awareness training for Practice Nurses

Although a natural event in a woman’s life, many women struggle during menopause. 75% of women experience menopausal symptoms, which can last up to 7 years. They can be debilitating and impact on relationships, work and wellbeing. Symptoms are often attributed to other causes and remain untreated.

As primary care is largely the first point of contact for patients, it is imperative that Practice Nurses have the knowledge and skills to support women through menopause. Menopause awareness training will allow nurses to provide women with safe and reliable information and treatment options. Furthermore, training will lessen the burden on the NHS, by reducing misdiagnosis and the risk of menopause-related long-term conditions.

Menopause is a priority area within the Women’s Health Strategy: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/womens-health-strategy-for-england/womens-health-strategy-for-england. The strategy was published last year and sets out the Government’s plans for boosting women’s health outcomes and improving how the health and care system listens to women and girls.

Whilst the Government has no current plans to fund menopause training for practice nurses specifically, the Government and NHS England are implementing a programme of work to improve menopause care so all women can access the support they need.

The NHS England National Menopausal Care Improvement Programme is working to improve clinical menopause care in England. The programme has worked with a range of healthcare professions such as GPs, nurses, pharmacists and specialists to develop an optimal pathway for treatment of menopause symptoms in primary care which will be tested within integrated care systems by the end of March 2024. The programme is also developing an education and training package on menopause for healthcare professionals. Healthcare professionals including practice nurses also have access to NHS workforce guidance (published November 2022) and an NHS e-learning module for Health Menopause Awareness (launched March 2023) to deepen their menopause awareness.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) sets the standards of education, training, conduct and performance for nurses and midwives in the UK and nursing associates in England. While these standards shape the content and design of programmes, so that upon completion students can join the professional register, they do not outline the specific educational curricula. Approved education institutions which train nurses set their own nursing curriculum, which needs to meet the NMC standards.