The scientific world may slowly be realizing just how much it has overlooked women’s health. Even so, not all topics within that broad umbrella are getting equal attention — and menopause is among the most neglected.
Education about menopause is lacking in the U.S., with more than 60% of women reporting they did not feel informed about menopause at all in a 2022 survey published in Women’s Health. Meanwhile, fewer than 2% of physicians are trained around menopause, according to the Menopause Society, leaving women with few options if they do seek care.
It might come as no surprise, then, that “menopause is not even reported in the health records,” said Rupal Patel, a professor of communication sciences and disorders at Northeastern University. “That’s what we’re trying to shine a light on.”
Patel and two other researchers at Northeastern are behind a new effort to bring attention to menopause. Called the Center for Women’s Health and Economic Wellbeing, or WHEALTH, the new initiative aims to study and raise awareness not only around the health impacts of menopause but how they affect women’s day-to-day lives, and particularly their economic reality.
