• Sanja Terzic, Gauri Bapayeva, Nazira Kadroldinova, Antonio Sarria-Santamera, Arnur Gusmanov, Yuliya Semenova, Gulzhanat Aimagambetova, Antonio Simone Laganà, Vito Chiantera, Talshyn Ukybassova, Kuralay Kongrtay, Meruyert Abdukassimova, Aruzhan Babazhanova, Karlygash Togyzbayeva, and Milan Terzic.
• Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Nazarbayev University, Kerey-Zhanybek Khans Street 5/1, Astana, 010000, Kazakhstan.
• J Gen Intern Med. 2024 May 1; 39 (6): 969977969-977.

BackgroundMenopausal quality of life (MenQoL) is a common concern that primary healthcare workers often encounter. Menopause has a significant impact on women's health, but studies examining its effect on the MenQoL of menopausal healthcare employees have produced conflicting results.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to compare the quality of life related to menopausal status (pre-, peri-, or postmenopausal) in healthcare workers from various clinical settings in Kazakhstan.DesignThis was a cross-sectional study.ParticipantsIn total, 222 menopausal healthcare workers (physicians, nurses/midwives, administrative staff, and cleaners) were enrolled from hospitals affiliated with the University Medical Center (UMC) in Kazakhstan.Main MeasuresThe outcome variable was assessed using the Menopausal Quality of Life Questionnaire (MENQOL), which evaluates MenQoL across four domains of menopausal symptoms: physical, psychological, vasomotor, and sexual.Key ResultsThe most frequently reported menopausal symptoms were physical ones, such as feeling tired or worn out (70.7%), followed by feeling a lack of energy (65.3%) and dry skin (64.1%). The postmenopause group had the highest mean MenQoL score in the vasomotor domain (mean 3.46 ± 1.84). There was a borderline statistical significance when comparing postmenopause and perimenopause groups in the physical domain. The pairwise comparison of mean sexual scores revealed that postmenopause women had the highest average score (3.3 ± 2.36) compared to both premenopause (mean 2.3 ± 1.82) and perimenopause (mean 2.22 ± 1.58) groups (p < 0.05).ConclusionsMenopausal status has influence on the MenQoL of healthcare workers. The study findings could have important implications for policymakers as they provide insight into the factors influencing the quality of life of menopausal healthcare employees. Creating a more menopause-friendly work environment may not only enhance the well-being of healthcare personnel but also improve their overall job satisfaction and performance.© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Society of General Internal Medicine.

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