Plain-English explanations of the technical terms and legislation used in this document.
- 111 urgent care service
- The national telephone and online service for urgent medical advice that is not an emergency.
- Body mass index (BMI)
- A measure of weight relative to height.
- British Menopause Society (BMS)
- The UK specialist society for menopause care professionals, which publishes clinical guidance.
- Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- The independent regulator of health and social care in England.
- College of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (CoSRH)
- The UK professional body for sexual and reproductive healthcare.
- Continuous combined regimen
- HRT with oestrogen and progestogen taken every day, usually with no bleeding once settled.
- Data Protection Act 2018
- The UK law, alongside the UK GDPR, on handling personal information.
- Endometrial ablation
- A procedure that destroys the womb lining to reduce heavy periods; some lining can remain.
- Endometriosis
- A condition where tissue like the womb lining grows elsewhere, such as in the pelvis.
- Enzyme-inducing medicine
- A medicine that speeds up how the liver breaks down other medicines, making them less effective.
- Equality Act 2010
- The law protecting people from discrimination, including because of sex, gender reassignment, age or disability.
- General Medical Council (GMC)
- The UK regulator of doctors.
- General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
- The regulator of pharmacists and pharmacies in Great Britain.
- General practitioner (GP)
- The family doctor with whom a patient is registered, who holds the main medical record.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
- The regulations setting the fundamental standards registered providers must meet.
- Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
- Medicines that replace hormones, mainly oestrogen, that fall at the menopause.
- Human Medicines Regulations 2012
- The main UK law on licensing, prescribing, supplying and advertising medicines.
- Lamotrigine
- A medicine for epilepsy and some mood disorders whose levels can fall with oestrogen.
- Levonorgestrel intrauterine system (LNG-IUS)
- A device in the womb releasing a progestogen; 52 mg devices protect the womb lining during HRT.
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
- The UK regulator of medicines and medical devices.
- Mental Capacity Act 2005
- The law on deciding whether a person can make a particular decision, and acting if they cannot.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
- The body publishing national health and care guidance for England.
- NICE guideline NG23
- Menopause: identification and management, the main national menopause guideline.
- Nominated Individual
- The senior person responsible to the CQC for supervising how the service is provided.
- Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
- The UK regulator of nurses, midwives and nursing associates.
- Off-label
- Use of a licensed medicine outside the terms of its licence, such as a different dose or duration.
- Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI)
- Loss of normal ovarian function before the age of 40.
- Progestogen
- A hormone similar to progesterone, used in HRT to protect the womb lining.
- Records Management Code of Practice (2023)
- National guidance on how long health and care records are kept and how they are managed.
- Registered Manager
- The person registered with the CQC as responsible for the day-to-day running of the service.
- Sequential (cyclical) regimen
- HRT with daily oestrogen and progestogen for part of each month, usually causing a monthly bleed.
- Serious Shortage Protocol (SSP)
- An arrangement letting a pharmacist supply an alternative during a serious shortage without contacting the prescriber.
- Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
- A written, step-by-step instruction for carrying out a task consistently and safely.
- Subtotal hysterectomy
- An operation removing the womb but leaving the cervix.
- Transdermal
- Absorbed through the skin, as with patches, gels and sprays.
- Transient ischaemic attack (TIA)
- A brief interruption of blood supply to the brain causing stroke-like symptoms; a medical emergency.
- UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)
- The UK's main data protection law.
- Unopposed oestrogen
- Oestrogen taken without a progestogen by someone with a womb, which can cause womb cancer.
- Venous thromboembolism (VTE)
- A blood clot in a vein, usually the leg, which can travel to the lungs.
- Yellow Card scheme
- The MHRA system for reporting suspected side effects of medicines.