The heavy period passport: a student-developed resource to improve documentation and patient education of menorrhagia at a Derbyshire practice.

Abstract

Menorrhagia is a condition in which the prevalence varies greatly, with some studies estimating that it can impact up to 25% of women. Menorrhagia, or heavy menstrual periods, can be part of a woman's normal menstrual lifecycle, and is impacted by events such as pregnancy and the menopause, as well as other gynaecological conditions such as endometrial cancer. Menorrhagia's definition is now broadly based on the woman's subjective experience of excessive blood loss and impact on quality of life. However, research suggests that women are undereducated about menorrhagia, feel societal pressure to mask their symptoms and may turn to online resources of variable validity in the quest for information.This project sought to understand the adherence of clinicians at a Derbyshire general practice to NICE guidelines regarding history documentation, discussion and provision of resources in patients with menorrhagia from May 2024 to November 2024. Fifty patients were identified following a SystemOne search of the terms 'menorrhagia' or 'excessive and frequent menstruation', 'heavy menstrual period' and 'perimenopausal menorrhagia'.Overall, documentation according to NICE guidelines was poor, often missing the impact of menorrhagia on a woman's quality of life, and there was a lack of documentation regarding the provision of evidence-based resources for patient education. These findings likely represent growing time pressures of practitioners. To combat this, a 'Heavy Periods Passport' has been developed to be uploaded to the patient record to address this gap in the clinical record, ensure patients are provided with accurate information and to improve continuity of care.