Nurse education in menopause: evaluation of learning in first cohort of a University accredited course in menopause and health

Introduction. Nurses in the UK advise menopausal women and make treatment recommendations, often prescribing hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and monitoring its safety and efficacy. However, there is no requirement for nurses to complete an accredited education programme in menopause and nurses’ knowledge can vary widely. This course was established to encourage nurses to achieve and demonstrate a level of competence in this field of nursing expertise. Content of the course was as follows: physiology and psychology of menopause; menopause symptomatology and long-term biological effects; osteoporosis; HRT pharmacology and prescribing; complementary therapies used in menopause; evaluation, assessment and monitoring; multidisciplinary working and team skills; cultural, social and psychological aspects of menopause. Methods. Fourteen nurses commenced the first course and completed an evaluation of their knowledge before the course, using a 10-point linear scale. Five were prescribing nurses and all were actively and independently advising women about menopause-related issues and discussing treatment options. Twelve completed the course and 11 completed the evaluation afterwards. The following criteria were measured: general menopause knowledge; physiology understanding; specific HRT-prescribing knowledge; confidence in prescribing HRT; knowledge of therapies other than HRT; understanding of risks and benefits of various therapies; confidence in teaching others about menopause. Results. The results indicated that there was a highly significant change in scores over time for all questions examined. In each case there was an increase in the scores from before to after. All nurses reported a significantly improved knowledge and understanding, with the areas of greatest improvement being HRT prescribing and understanding of risks and benefits of various therapies. Average scores for all items improved significantly and individually, some nurses described their knowledge moving from ‘poor’ prior to the course, to ‘excellent’ afterwards. Conclusions. Based on this small number of nurse evaluations, it would appear that some nurses are seeing and advising women with knowledge that they consider to be ‘poor’ and with little confidence. This course offers nurses the opportunity to improve their knowledge base and increase their confidence in menopause practice.