Menopause Care Professional Certificate (MCPC)

Our Menopause Care Professional Certificate (MCPC) aims to equip healthcare professionals with the knowledge, clinical skills, and experience to provide high quality menopause care.

It will allow health professionals to assess and manage individuals presenting for routine menopause care. It can act as both a standalone qualification for primary care providers and as the starting point for those who wish to progress to more advanced study or lead a menopause service.

An FSRH advanced training programme for those aiming to lead a menopause service and receive complex referrals will be launched at a later point. We are currently discussing exactly what learning and outcomes will be included in the advanced level programme. If you are interested in advanced training, you can start training for the MCPC which will be required for the new advanced qualification.

Trainers - help deliver this exciting new qualification

All our qualifications and certificates are delivered in partnership with our Faculty Registered Trainers and Principal Trainers, assuring an outstanding learning experience. If you're already a Faculty Registered Trainer or Principal Trainer, sign up to deliver this qualification and help improve the standard of menopause care for patients and clients.

You can find out more in this Guide for MCPC Trainers.

Apply to become a Menopause Care Principal Trainer

To complete the above form, you will need to have a MyFSRH account. Find out how to create a MyFSRH account here.

Who can apply for the MCPC?

The MCPC is for healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland who work regularly in the field of menopause care.

For the MCPC, the essential entry requirements are:

Fully registered with a relevant professional body (see list below)
Work in SRH, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, primary care or any other speciality related to women’s health care, and see patients presenting for routine menopause care

Healthcare professionals from the UK or the Republic of Ireland who wish to undertake any FSRH training that does not involve direct contact with or treatment of patients in a UK health facility, will be required to be licenced and in good standing with the relevant UK or Irish regulatory body. For example, doctors wishing to undertake the MCPC with remote assessments will need to be registered with the General Medical Council or the Irish Medical Council.

Healthcare professionals from the UK or the Republic of Ireland who wish to undertake any FSRH training that involves direct contact with or treatment of patients in a UK health facility, will be required to be licenced and in good standing with the relevant UK regulatory body. For example, doctors from the UK or the Republic of Ireland wishing to undertake the MCPC in a UK health facility will need to be registered with the General Medical Council.

The FSRH currently recognises the following regulatory bodies:

The General Medical Council (UK)
Irish Medical Council
The Nursing & Midwifery Council (UK)
Nursing & Midwifery Board of Ireland
General Pharmaceutical Council (UK)
The Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland
Physician Associate Managed Voluntary Register (UK)
Health and Care Professions Council (UK)

If you have little experience of menopause care, you may wish to consider attending our Essentials of Menopause Care course before applying for the MCPC.

How do I apply for the MCPC?

You will need to secure a Principal Trainer before you formally apply. You will also need to have a MyFSRH account. Find out how to create a MyFSRH account.

The MCPC is proving to be popular and we have a waiting list. At this time we have closed the waiting list. We are working on software to help those on the waiting list to find a Principal Trainer. We will be in touch with those on the waiting list once this is available. When the waiting list is open to more potential applicants we will include the link here.

Training may require you to travel to a Principal Trainer if one is not available locally. Please take the time, distance and costs associated with this travel into account before agreeing on where to do your training with your Principal Trainer. Alternatively, you might agree to remote training and assessment with your Principal Trainer.

Once you have secured a Principal Trainer you will need to formally apply to FSRH and pay an application fee of £450 (which includes a non-refundable application fee of £75). The link to the application form will be sent to you when you reach the top of the waiting list. You will not currently find a link to the MCPC application form on our website.

Once you have applied, we will let you know by email within 21 working days whether you have been accepted. You may be contacted by a member of the team within this time if additional information or evidence is required.

If you are not accepted, you will receive an email and a refund on your payment (minus the £75 application fee).

If you are accepted, you will receive an acceptance email that will provide you with the next steps. You will need to inform your Principal Trainer that you have been accepted and can proceed with training and assessment.

What does MCPC training and assessment involve?

The curriculum for the MCPC details the required Capability in Practice (CiP) and 10 associated key skills required for the successful completion of the certificate.

The CiP for the MCPC is: The healthcare professional is able to use their knowledge, clinical skills, and experience to assess and manage individuals presenting for routine menopause care.

The MCPC includes the following topics:

Consultation skills in menopause (Key skills 1-4)
Risk/benefit analysis (Key skill 5)
Diagnosis, management options and treatment choices (Key skills 6-8)
Follow-up and referral (Key skills 9-10)

You must have a Principal Trainer who oversees all training and assessment aspects. Your learning and assessments are captured in an online portfolio that is accessible via the FSRH Training Hub. This portfolio is submitted when all required components have been evidenced by yourself and approved by your Principal Trainer.

For more specific information, please explore the ‘Learning’ and ‘Assessment’ tabs below. Please note that both learning and assessment activities may be carried out in person or remotely.

Learning

It is recognised that candidates might have different preferred learning styles and that knowledge may be acquired from a variety of activities. The MCPC Syllabus details recommended courses and resources that should be discussed with your Principal Trainer.

Attending a theory course is not a compulsory part of the MCPC, but you must meet the Knowledge Criteria before the certificate can be awarded, and a theory course is an excellent way to gain the knowledge needed. In addition, you are required to attend four structured facilitated workshops that each last 2 hours that will help you gain and test your knowledge.

Other learning you must undertake will be captured in an Independent Learning Portfolio. While these entries are formative, together they will create a summative assessment, and the completion of the portfolio should take you approximately 12-15 hours.

Assessment

Your online FSRH Training Hub portfolio will outline all the assessments that you must complete to gain the MCPC. You will be able to access the portfolio and all the necessary materials when your MCPC application is accepted.

The three key areas of assessment are listed below. Assessment templates, where applicable, are available on the FSRH Training Hub, within each assessment area.

Independent Learning Portfolio (ILP)
Summative Clinical Assessments (SCAs)
Completion Review Meeting (CRM)

All training and assessments must be completed within two years of the date you receive the email from the FSRH accepting you on to the MCPC.

Principal Trainer

The Principal Trainer will be your primary contact throughout your MCPC journey, and is responsible for most assessments, as well as the final sign-off for the certificate.

Where there is delegation of teaching or assessment to another suitable professional, it is the Principal Trainer’s duty to ensure that the delegated professional is sufficiently competent, willing, and able to train and assess you.

How do I become a Menopause Care Principal Trainer?

Menopause Care Principal Trainers need both educational and clinical skills to provide effective training and assessment of the practical elements of the Menopause Care Professional Certificate (MCPC).

To become a Principal Trainer, you will need to meet these requirements:

Be a member of the FSRH (affiliate, diplomate, associate, full member and fellow are all appropriate)
Meet one or more of the following criteria:

FSRH Faculty Registered Trainer
Approved as a Principal Trainer for the FSRH Menopause Care SSM
GP Trainer
GMC recognised and approved trainer
Named Clinical/Educational Supervisor
Hold the FSRH Postgraduate Award (PGA) in Medical Education in sexual and reproductive healthcare (SRH)
Hold the FSRH LoC Med
Successful completion within the last 5 years of a university accredited postgraduate course in medical, clinical, or healthcare teaching or education, with a minimum of 15 credits at Levels 6 or 7
Successful completion of Academy of Medical Educators (AoME) accredited courses (within the last 5 years)
- We do not accept all AoME accredited courses and therefore may request additional information to support your application
Current Member or Fellow of the AoME
- Associate and Student membership not applicable
Successful completion of an Advance Higher Education (Advance HE) accredited course (formerly known as the Higher Education Academy) within the last 5 years
Current Fellow, Senior Fellow, or Principal Fellow of the Advance HE
Practice Assessor as accepted by the NMC and on your employer Assessor Register
Successfully completed the Nurse Mentor Training

Hold one or more of the following:
- FSRH Advanced Certificate in Menopause Care SSM
- BMS Advanced Certificate in PPMC
- CCT in CSRH
- CESR in CSRH
- CCT in RCOG with Menopause ATSM
Maintain up-to-date knowledge of standards, guidance and best practice in menopause care by regularly reviewing journals and research papers.
Seeing a minimum of 100 menopause patients per year, of whom 50 must be new presentations.

Please note that we may ask for you to submit additional information or evidence of the above to support your application after submission.

If you would like to apply to be a Menopause Care Principal Trainer, please complete the below application form:

Apply to become a Menopause Care Principal Trainer

To complete the above form, you will need to have a MyFSRH account. Find out how to create a MyFSRH account here.

Your submitted application form will be sent to the Education and Training team and may be reviewed by the Menopause Care Guardian. You will then be contacted by the Education and Training team and may be asked to provide further information and evidence to support your application.

If you are an experienced trainer who leads a menopause service and would like to become a Principal Trainer, but you do not meet each of the above five criteria, please email our Specialty Support Team at specialty@fsrh.org to discuss the possibility of becoming a Principal Trainer.

Please note that Principal Trainers must re-register every five years following the same process as above. You will be required to stay current with your menopause and educational knowledge and skills.

Fees

The MCPC requires payment of a £450.00 application fee which includes a £75 non-refundable administration fee. This is payable when you apply. Please ensure you meet all the entry requirements before you make an application. Any agreed extensions will incur a fee of £50.

You should discuss fees that are payable to your Principal Trainers and others as part of the pre-application conversation. These fees would need to be agreed with them and are set at their discretion.

Further support

Please explore our Support Portal and FAQs, where you will be able to search for the main questions and topics related to the MCPC.

If you still cannot find an answer to your query, you can use the Support Portal to submit a ticket which can be addressed by our Support Team.