Menopause Warriors

Gateshead Health’s dedicated menopause support group, Menopause Warriors, offer colleagues a safe and understanding space to discuss menopause and peri-menopause, and the impact that they can have.

Our Menopause Warriors meet on a monthly basis – at different dates and times to encourage participation from all areas, and all are welcome to attend a meeting, enjoy a chat and discuss their experiences in an understanding environment. To find out when the next meeting is, keep an eye on our news section or drop us a line.

The Menopause Warriors also have a dedicated WhatsApp group chat. To access the group chat, please get in touch with the health and wellbeing team.

Finally, amongst our Menopause Warriors are Menopause Buddies. Buddies provide you with someone you can get in touch with at any time to chat about the challenges you’re facing. To arrange to be paired up with a buddy, just send us an email.

Henpicked

Gateshead Health are currently partnered with award-winning experts Henpicked, who are helping us to not only improve our support offering in the area of menopause and peri-menopause but also become a menopause-accredited employer.

Henpicked work with us to deliver a range of education and awareness events aimed at both managers and colleagues. Sessions are designed for all – so whether you’re suffering from symptoms, know someone who is or want to increase your knowledge, everyone will learn something.

Due to the terms of our partnership, we can not publicly host Henpicked’s vast support content. To access their sessions, please instead visit the Menopause Support page of StaffZone via the button below. Here you’ll find everything from their ‘Menopause in Minutes’ video to webinars on topics such as the impact of menopause on bone health, fatigue, handling menopause, hot flushes, periods, mental health, fertility, weight gain, stress, brain fog, sleep and much more! There are also books, podcasts, apps and more!

If you do not have access to a Trust device, please get in touch with us and we can arrange private access directly.

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)

In April 2023, the government announced that an unlimited quantity of HRT products can now be accessed through a 12-month Prescription Prepayment Certificate, reducing the cost of accessing this support to just £18.70 per year.

It’s anticipated that the support will help over 400,000 who experience symptoms of the menopause to access support while saving them hundreds per year. With 3 in 4 women experiencing symptoms, and 1 in 4 experiencing severe symptoms – HRT can help those in need in managing symptoms.

Recording menopause absence on ESR

The NHS electronic staff record (ESR) team has worked with NHS England and NHS Improvement to develop a guide on recording menopause related sickness, which can be accessed through the button below.

The guidance includes step-by-step instructions on how to record menopause related absence to help HR colleagues and ESR users.

Nearly 60 per cent of people between the ages of 45 and 55 who are experiencing menopause symptoms say it has a negative impact on them at work. By recording this accurately, we can gain a better understanding of the impact menopause is having on our colleagues – and work to put in place the necessary support.