‘The best reward is to see a patient smiling’: Doctor wins prestigious award for menopause work

A Lynn doctor specialising in women’s health has won a prestigious award for her work as a menopause specialist as well as training GPs about how to better help women.

Dr Saadat Ahsan, who is a GP at Southgates Medical Centre, was declared the winner of the Carol Brown Award 2023 by the Royal College of General Practitioners in a ceremony held in Newmarket.

Since starting at the surgery in 2016, Dr Ahsan has helped numerous women through menopause and is now offering her expertise to GPs around the country and raising awareness.

She was handed her award on September 13 and said she felt “honoured” to have been recognised.

Dr Ashan has spoken to the Lynn News about the importance of talking about menopause, which can happen for a woman usually between the ages of 45 and 55.

“Menopause is a very neglected area, and the way it can affect a woman’s life is huge. But it can also affect the life of their male counterparts and their work colleagues, it is so significant in a woman’s life,” said Dr Ashan.

“For some women, it can run smoothly and for others it can be very challenging.

“It can be very difficult for women in the workplace, and we are planning to make a menopause corner in the surgery which will have information and a QR code to the website.”

She explained the importance of offering personalised care for people struggling with menopause, as it can affect women in a number of ways including hot flushes, migraines and mental health problems.

Dr Ashan added that during the time of menopause, a woman may experience a lower libido.

She said: “Sexual health is rarely spoken about with menopause, I like to ask women about it and a lot report they have little to no libido.”

With International Menopause Day just around the corner, Dr Ashan said: “We don’t always treat menopause with medication, we give information that helps and let women know they are not alone – it is not strange to be feeling a certain way and it is a normal thing to go through.”

Dr Ashan is hoping to bring a Woman’s Health Hub to Lynn, with the aim of it helping women of all ages with issues with contraception, menopause and more.

She has been practising as a gynaecologist for two decades and said she has noticed that more people are open to talking about menopause now.

In relation to winning her award, she said: “It’s nice to get an award like this, but the best reward is to see a patient smiling.”

She paid tribute to the surgery for creating an enabling environment to complete her work in as well as her mentor Dr Ian Hotchkin.

She added: “I am profoundly grateful to the Norfolk and Waveney ICB for providing me with the opportunity to pursue and enhance my expertise in menopause by doing the ‘Personalised Care Fellowship in menopause’, which has been an intellectually enriching and academically stimulating journey.

“I fulfilled my passion for teaching by curating and delivering ‘Bitesize menopause learning sessions’ to my fellow health professionals, raising awareness about this important transition in all women’s lives’.”