Menopause Care in Canada: The Moment Must Become a Movement

Lately, it seems like everyone is talking about menopause. The conversation on social media is very active, championed by influencers and celebrities alike. 

In the workplace, however, it’s a different story. Stigma still prevails. Many women suffer in silence through hot flashes, night sweats, brain fog, joint pains, and over two dozen other symptoms, either reluctant to seek help or unaware that help even exists. 

As an executive in the pharmaceutical industry, I’ve realized there is a glaring disconnect.   While we have made incredible strides in public awareness, a clinical and systemic gap remains.

The Economic and Workforce Impact of Menopause

This should be a wake-up call for all of us. If specialized expertise isn’t standardized across our healthcare system, the conversation we are having in mainstream and social media is only solving half the problem.  

Women in this universal life stage are not a “niche population.” Five million Canadian workers are women over 40, representing one quarter of our workforce, according to the Menopause Foundation of Canada. And 95% of women report experiencing an average of seven of its more than 30 symptoms. 

Despite these figures, even at Bayer, a company that has been a leader in women’s healthcare for a century, over half of our Canadian female employees experiencing menopause didn’t know about the support available to them. This highlights a fundamental truth: if the roadmap isn’t clear to those of us inside the industry, we cannot expect it to be clear for the millions of women navigating it alone. 

“Canada should establish policies that will benefit the millions of mothers, sisters, and daughters in the prime of their lives, many of whom deal with troublesome symptoms while simultaneously caring for others and maintaining careers.”

This is not just a medical issue; it is a serious economic burden. Unmanaged menopause symptoms cost the Canadian economy 3.5 billion CAD annually, with a staggering 540,000 lost days of work per year, due to menopause symptom management. The status quo is a losing proposition for everyone.

Now that menopause has entered the conversation, it’s time to take it to the next level. Canada should establish policies that will benefit the millions of mothers, sisters, and daughters in the prime of their lives, many of whom deal with troublesome symptoms while simultaneously caring for others and maintaining careers. 

Compared with other countries, Canada is uniquely positioned to architect a national menopause strategy to support future generations—if it acts now. 

Barriers to Effective Menopause Care

My own experience is reflective of the social taboo around menopause that is only now beginning to lift. Although I’m well-versed in women’s health as an executive leading Bayer Pharma, menopause was somehow not on my radar until I attended an informational event at Bayer for employees.

This should not be surprising when we examine the systemic flaws that have led us here. Research in women’s health has long been underfunded.  Additionally, medical students are not sufficiently educated on the topic. Today, in Canada, an estimated 41% of Canadian medical schools do not include menopause in their curriculum. 

If doctors don’t receive the necessary training in medical school, they cannot be the partners women need to choose the best treatment options. They can’t explain or support menopause care—from lifestyle modifications to menopause hormone therapy—if they aren’t trained to initiate the discussion. We must ask: why is a natural life event experienced by half of the population still treated as an elective topic in medical education? 

Pause for a moment and check your own knowledge. Can you answer basic questions about menopause? What is the definition of it? Why does it happen to all women? And what supportive care options exist? 

Menopause refers to the final menstrual period, which marks the end of fertility and menstruation. It is a normal, natural event that involves the reduction of ovarian function and decline of hormones, estrogen, and progesterone. Due to these changes, women may experience a vast array of physical and emotional symptoms and conditions that can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and heart disease, osteoporosis.

Even though medical treatment does exist, access in some cases is still a problem. On average, Canadians wait two years after regulatory approval of innovative medicines for coverage by public drug plans – twice as long as many peer countries. 

Include Menopause Care in National Health Policy

We must do better. That’s why we at Bayer are calling for menopause care to be part of a federal women’s health framework. Fortunately, Canada is in a strong position to lead, and some policymakers are already acting. 

Senator Daniele Henkel recently introduced Bill S-243, which would establish a national framework for women’s health in Canada. If passed, this act would strengthen investment in research, foster collaboration between the private and public sectors, enhance training for healthcare professionals, bolster primary care services for women, and work toward improving access to care for those in marginalized communities. 

While this is an important step, it’s essential to include menopause care in the scope of women’s health alongside other existing pillars, such as contraceptives, prenatal care, and breast and ovarian care. National standards ought to be deployed across all provinces and territories, in consultation with medical and health system experts. 

Employers also have a critical role. Supporting employees through menopause—via flexible working environments and mental health resources—is a business imperative.  

From Menopause “Moment” to Movement

As geopolitical shifts reshape the landscape of political power and economic dominance, Canada has a golden opportunity to emerge out front. Effective leadership starts with recognizing that women’s health is not a luxury item. It’s fundamental to delivering our country’s full potential. 

The “moment” started the conversation. Now it is time for the “movement” to deliver the care that Canada’s mothers, sisters and daughters deserve.