Menopause: what works, what doesn't, and what needs to change

Many women going through menopause face a double burden: a healthcare system that doesn't always listen, and a commercial marketplace selling supplements with wildly inflated and unproven claims.  

For women from racialised minoritised backgrounds, there's often an added layer – a culture of silence, lack of representation, and information that doesn't reflect their experiences. 

This event brings together new research findings, lived experience, and free evidence-based resources to cut through the noise. 

What you'll hear: 

Dr Anne-Marie Boylan (University of Oxford) will share findings from two major research projects: 

·       How women from South Asian backgrounds experience a culture of silence around menopause, feel excluded from public discourse , and what healthcare services could do differently; 

·       The truth about commercial menopause products – including marketing claims unsupported by evidence and insight into the ingredients allegedly ‘natural’ supplements contain. 

Award-winning screenwriter Sally Wainwright (Happy Valley, Gentleman Jack, Last Tango in Halifax) will discuss creating Riot Women – her BBC series about midlife and menopause. 

Dr Shema Tariq (University College London) will introduce InTune – the UK's first free, inclusive, evidence-based national menopause education and support programme. Find out what it will offer. 

You'll also have the chance to: 

·       Ask questions in a panel discussion 

·       Shape future menopause research priorities at Oxford – your voice directly influences what gets studied next and feeds into NHS guidance 

This event is for: 

·       Anyone experiencing perimenopause or menopause 

·       Partners, colleagues, managers, and friends who want to understand and support others 

·       Healthcare professionals 

·       Anyone interested in health equity and evidence-based care 

Accessibility: The venue has a hearing loop (can be activated on request) and is wheelchair accessible. Hot topics in menopause: equity, evidence and experience

Speaker Biographies: 

Dr Anne-Marie Boylan 
Co-director of the DPhil in Evidence-Based Health Care, and Senior Researcher at Oxford's Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences. Her research focuses on women's health and patient experiences. She leads research on improving menopause communication for South Asian women and investigating the evidence behind commercial products marketed for menopausal symptoms. 
www.phc.ox.ac.uk/team/anne-marie-boylan 

Dr Shema Tariq 
Principal Research Fellow at University College London's Institute for Global Health and Honorary Consultant in Sexual Health and HIV. She leads the PRIME study – one of the largest international studies on HIV and menopause – and is developing InTune, the UK's first national evidence-based menopause education and support programme. 
profiles.ucl.ac.uk/51518-shema-tariq 

Sally Wainwright OBE 
Award-winning screenwriter renowned for Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax, and Gentleman Jack. Her work has won multiple BAFTAs for Best Drama Series. In 2024, she created Riot Women for BBC One, channelling her own menopause experiences into a compelling series about menopause and the challenges women face in midlife.  
www.bbc.co.uk/writers/resources/be-inspired/sally-wainwright 

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