"Hospital chosen for its “expertise” but left..."

Menopause Clinic, Salford Royal Hospital

What a waste of time! Attended the “Menopause Clinic” in the Gynaecology Department but the only symptoms that the Consultant was interested in were ‘hot flushes’ and ‘night sweats’ ... none of my other symptoms, which were of greater concern to me, were of any interest to them. With no explanation, the Consultant advised me that they would write to my GP to recommend HRT but that the GP would choose which to prescribe inline with their own budget (so, not the one best suited to my needs then?). The Consultant added briefly that there is small increased risk of breast cancer and blood clots, and asked if I, or anyone in my family had had cancer? I told him that my GP had told me that I had “Sticky Blood” and that my mum died shortly after she was diagnosed with secondary cancers in five organs at the age of 50yrs but because they it was too advanced/she was too ill for further investigation, the primary cancer wasn’t identified. After a brief thought, the Consultant responded that “it should be fine because it wasn’t breast cancer”. How do they know this when we don’t? To add insult to injury, the Consultant went on to say that “when taking HRT you need a positive attitude because a negative attitude will affect its success”. I take it then that these menopause-related symptoms must all be in my head?!? My husband and I walked away from this appointment knowing no more about menopause or HRT than we did when we walked in. Very disappointed and this is from a ‘University Teaching Trust’.