Following the debate on menopause in the House of Commons last month, Kegel8 wrote letters to the MP’s involved, thanking them for compassion and enthusiasm to bring the menopause and its symptoms out of the tabooed shadows and into the spotlight. Kegel8 also highlighted some of the other issues women face during the menopause, such as incontinence, that were not highlighted during the debate.
Recently, we received a response on behalf of Nigel Adams MP:
Thank you for your correspondence of 22 October to Nigel Adams about menopause. I have been asked to reply.
I appreciate your concerns.
The Department agrees that there is much more to be done to make the NHS more responsive to the needs of women. As things stand, too many women are unable to have informed conversations with healthcare professionals about their symptoms and options for treatment, whether because of stigma or lack of awareness.
Under the leadership of Public Health England, organisations including the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and the Royal College of General Practitioners have recently been working together to agree to a set of shared values and to reach a vision for reproductive health. Public Health England will lead work on the reproductive health action plan due to be published in 2019, which the Department hopes will create a platform for action to deliver improved reproductive health services.
In the meantime, Jackie Doyle-Price, Parliamentary under Secretary of State for Mental Health, Inequalities and Suicide Prevention, will continue to engage with major partners in the health service to ask them to ensure they are doing all they can to listen to women about their experiences of healthcare. Ms Doyle-Price wants organisations to review existing guidance and sources of information to consider how to improve the quality of interactions between women and health professionals. She will also continue to meet those campaigning to raise the profile of women’s health conditions, including menopause, endometriosis and fibroids, to hear more about women’s first-hand experiences and listen to their views about how healthcare can be more responsive to their needs.
Kegel8 are thoroughly pleased that the debate on menopause will not be a one-off occasion, rather a gateway into transforming women’s health for better.
We are looking forward to seeing the reproductive health action plan in the new year, but in the meantime, you can learn more about the menopause here:
How Does Menopause Affect The Pelvic Floor?
What are the Problems Associated with Menopause?
What is the Treatment for Menopause?
What do you think about the announcement of the reproductive health action plan coming in 2019? What areas need to be tackled with high priority? Let us know in the comments below or over on Twitter.