This year, World Menopause Day was held in October, and as part of this, fox&cat, the Healthcare Communications Association (HCA) and The Menopause Charity launched a joint campaign to help guide important conversations around the menopause at work for those working in healthcare communications. This resource comes at a time where there is no legal protection aimed at workers going through the menopause, and hopes to bring best practice to the industry.
In healthcare communications, it is estimated that 60-70% of practitioners are women and so the menopause has the potential to affect a larger percentage of the workforce compared to other sectors. Women over the age of 50 are the fastest growing group in the UK workforce and given the average age of the menopause is 51, symptoms can often occur at the peak of a woman’s career. Currently around 10% of women aged 45-55 have left their jobs due to the menopause.
The campaign Me and my menoPAUSE principally aims to help empower those going through the menopause to ensure their needs are understood and addressed by their employer. To do this, the campaign asks all stakeholders to PAUSE and consider the menopause and its implications. Using the acronym PAUSE: a five-step framework helps support both team leaders/line manages and those going through the menopause:
- Prepare for a conversation
- Actively contribute towards a productive conversation
- Understand each other’s needs and perspectives
- Support in the development of a plan
- Engage with others as necessary and where appropriate.
Me and my menoPAUSE also aims to educate others at work who may need to be aware of the impact of the menopause including employers (CEOs, MDs and HR teams) and colleagues.
Mike Dixon, CEO of the Healthcare Communications Association, said: “We’re delighted to be launching these new resources alongside fox&cat and The Menopause Charity. As an organisation we aim to drive best practice and well-being within the sector. This campaign, alongside our wealth of other health and wellbeing initiatives, helps to ensure the evolving needs of those who work in health communications are continually being considered and addressed.”
The menopause can have a significant impact on physical and mental health and those with symptoms will need to make adjustments to their life – both within and outside work – to allow for the changes to their body, mood and ability. The mental health impact of going through the menopause isn’t just caused by hormone change, it’s equally around the anxiety and stress caused by worrying about the impact on their ability to work, of stigma and of embarrassment.
Paul Hutchings, founder of fox&cat, said: “Due to its mental health impact, perhaps unsurprisingly the menopause was one of the main triggers for stress and pressure that attendees of our mental well-being programme, Under the tree, mentioned in their evaluation.
“It is my hope that this campaign will help teams to have more meaningful conversations around the menopause at work that will lead to much reduced feelings of avoidable pressure and stress for all involved.”
The resource draws on expert advice from: Jenny Haskey, The Menopause Charity, Antonia Katsambis, Independent HR Practitioner, Diane Wass, Managing Director, JPA Health and Lucy Heaton, Menopause Coach.
An introductory webinar discussing the resources and their importance is available on the HCA’s website. Find out more at www.the-hca.org and www.themenopausecharity.org.
The Menopause Charity exists to educate everybody so that perimenopause and menopause are properly understood. It provides trusted information in a way that everyone understands and works to ensure everyone has equal access to appropriate advice, support and treatment.
