The British Menopause Society: next steps 2011.

In this edition, we publish the recently launched statement from the British Menopause Society (BMS). The society has produced this statement in response to the health reforms proposed by the coalition government. This statement not only gives a clear outline of the expanding demographic challenge that is menopause, it also highlights the major health issues that accompany the menopausal transition. These health changes may be either directly as a result of the hormonal changes or as a consequence of the natural ageing processes. In this statement, the BMS clearly recognizes the importance of a healthy lifestyle, fitness and identification of modifiable risk factors in the overall reduction in the risk of disease. Several key recommendations have been made that encompass changes that range from simple lifestyle modifications to changes in government health policy. Inequalities of access to appropriate health care and knowledge of both well-known and lesser understood disease risk factors and of treatment options is a major concern of the BMS. There is also a concern that with the significant reduction in hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prescribing since the publication of the WHI study, there has been an evolving reduction in acknowledgement of the importance of the discussion of the menopause and its related issues in the health service in general. This is likely to be driven by: