Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve the training GPs and other medical professionals receive on the treatment of perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms.

Each medical school in the England sets its own undergraduate curriculum which must meet the standards set by the General Medical Council (GMC) in its Outcomes for Graduates. The GMC updated the Outcomes for Graduates in 2018, following extensive engagement and consultation with medical education experts. The GMC would expect that, in fulfilling these standards, newly qualified doctors are able to identify, treat and manage any care needs a person has, including the menopause and perimenopause.

The training curricula for postgraduate trainee doctors is set by the relevant Royal College and must also meet the standards set by the GMC. The perimenopause and menopause are included in the curriculum set by the Royal College of General Practitioners and emphasised in the College’s clinical topic guides, which supplement the curriculum.