Listening to women’s experiences of heavy menstrual bleeding – what are the implications for GPs?

In this episode, we talk to Professor Joe Kai, who is a GP and Clinical Professor in the Centre for Academic Primary Care at the University of Nottingham. Title of paper: Women’s experiences of heavy menstrual bleeding and medical treatment: Qualitative studyPaper available at: https://doi.org/10.3399/BJGP.2022.0460Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) is known to significantly affect women’s health and quality of life, with pressure to conceal symptoms. Recent evidence on women’s experiences of HMB and its treatment after seeking primary care is lacking. This research shows the debilitating impacts of HMB on women, and the challenges they can still face, including overcoming taboo and low general awareness that treatment can help. Women had widely differing experiences of current medical treatments for HMB in general practice, and emphasised how they valued patient-centred communication and involvement in decisions in helping them.