3. What action is the Welsh Government taking to support women in Wales who are experiencing the menopause? OQ56536

Diolch yn fawr, Vikki. The Welsh Government takes women’s health, including menopausal concerns, very seriously and expects all health boards to provide a full range of services to women experiencing the menopause in accordance with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance.

Thank you, Minister, and welcome to your new role. Menopause is, of course, a condition that will affect half the population of Wales at some point in their lives, with symptoms including problems sleeping, issues with concentration, digestive problems and stiff, aching joints. Recent research has shown that seven out of 10 women say that menopause significantly affects their mental well-being, and eight out of 10 women say that the side effects of menopause have had a significant negative impact on their ability to carry out their employment roles effectively. There are almost 100 menopause clinics throughout the UK, yet only three of these are in Wales. Minister, with menopause having such a significant impact on the health, well-being and, indeed, the economy of Wales, what plans does Welsh Government have to improve current service provision and ensure that all women affected by menopause are adequately supported? 

Thanks very much, Vikki, and I know I'm at that age now where I have to deal with some of these issues and, certainly, what I do know is that every individual has different symptoms and has to deal with this in their own way. What we've done in Wales is to make sure that every individual—. There's a need to tailor the advice to that particular individual. We have four recognised clinics in Wales that are recognised by the British Menopause Society: one in Llantrisant, one in Caerleon, one in Wrexham, and one in Deeside. And what we try and do is to make sure that we have this entry point through the GP, and that is generally the system that I think makes a lot of sense. And then the idea is that the GPs, who should have been through some training that has been set by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, can stick to the advice given by NICE, and then, if necessary, they will refer on to those clinics that you mentioned. So, that's the system that we have in Wales, but I have asked my officials to conduct a review of the current menopause provision to assess delivery in line with those NICE guidelines, just to make sure that we are doing what we expect people to be delivering.

Firstly, can I congratulate the Minister on her new role, the Deputy Minister for mental health on hers, and you on the continuation of yours, Julie?

As someone who has the delights of menopause that Vikki just outlined to come, sooner rather than later, unfortunately, I do also believe that this is an issue that is vitally important to talk about and address, and not just for women, but for men to understand and talk about as well. As my former colleague, Suzy Davies, quite rightly campaigned for and successfully campaigned for, it's something that we now should all talk about. It's no longer a taboo subject and it now will be included in the delivery of the new curriculum. Fair Treatment for the Women of Wales and their Not Just Hot Flushes campaign estimate that one in 10 menopausal women in the UK leave employment, as Vikki outlined, as a result of unmanageable symptoms, lack of appropriate treatment, employers' lack of understanding, and poor access to services. The impact that menopause can have, as you know, on a workforce can be debilitating, and there should be more treatment available and greater understanding of the issues faced. At present, as you said, there are four clinics available. One of them is an excellent nurse-led clinic in the Aneurin Bevan health board facility, but there is a four-and-a-half month waiting list to access it. It's very successful, so maybe that's also a clinic, nurse-led idea, that you should look into and maybe roll out, because that has been successful. It's just the wait that's a problem on that one.

Will the Minister commit to ensuring that specialist clinics like these are easily accessible across Wales, and that you work with relevant charities and employers organisations to ensure that women going through these struggles related to the menopause get the understanding and the help that they need? Thank you.

Diolch yn fawr. I'd like to pay tribute as well to Suzy Davies for the great work that she did to put this onto the agenda. I was really pleased that one of the last things that the education Minister did was to make that commitment that, in the curriculum, women's health issues are going to be a part of what everybody learns about in school, because you're absolutely right: this is not just an issue for women; men have to understand it as well. And I'm really pleased that a lot of unions in Wales have also championed this cause and made sure there's heightened awareness of this issue throughout Wales.

I was listening to Woman's Hour today on the way in, and it was very interesting, talking about the whole issue of women's health and the need to really focus on it and to make sure that we take this seriously. Certainly, in the Welsh Government, we do take it seriously. We have a women's health reference group that really looks at these things in detail, just to make sure it's getting the attention that these issues deserve, and I look forward to hearing more about that as I continue in this role. But, certainly, we're obviously concerned about accessibility at the moment. The pandemic has pushed everything back. But I think you're absolutely right: there are some nurse experts who can actually help a great deal in these spaces, and I think we have to try and condition people to get people to understand that, actually, an expert can be somebody who's been doing the job and has absolute specialist information about it, who is not necessarily a consultant or a GP, and they can be very, very useful at times.