B.C. is home to Western Canada's first menopause clinic, delivering more than 150 appointments since opening in January.
The Complex Menopause Clinic provides both in-person and virtual care to patients facing unique health challenges "that are often overlooked" during menopause and premature menopause, a news release from B.C.'s Health Ministry Friday (July 4) said, highlighting the work the clinic does.
About 85 per cent of people experience "bothersome or debilitating symptoms" during menopause, the ministry said. Those symptoms include hot flashes, poor sleep, mental-health concerns and joint pain, while some people who experience premature menopause or those with spinal-cord injuries and other chronic diseases require clinical expertise that may be unavailable in other settings. The clinic also offers those specialized services.
Health Minister Josie Osborne said that women and gender-diverse people face "unique health challenges that are often overlooked – and menopause is one of them." She added the clinic will "strengthen the continuum of care for people navigating menopause."
The clinic also adds to existing BC Women's Hospital-led programs related to complex menopause, including bone, breast and heart health services. It also offers a range of services such as specialist consultation, counselling, medication management and referrals to other services.
B.C.'s parliamentary secretary for gender equity Jennifer Blatherwick said the clinic offers a supportive space for specialized menopause care and is a step toward advancing more compassionate care.
"Menopause is a normal stage in life that is not always talked about and many people are expected to endure it quietly."
The ministry added this clinic is building on the work the provincial and federal governments are doing to support women and gender-diverse people through menopause.
B.C. residents are expected to begin receiving free coverage for hormone replacement therapy to help treat menopausal symptoms. That's through an agreement with the federal government signed back in March.
Osborne and then-federal health minister Mark Holland signed the Pharmacare agreement that would be for more than $670 million over four years to provide access to the medications for B.C. residents.
