Bringing Menopause Care to the Forefront: TAMIRA Study Spotlighted at theZSOG–ECSACOG Annual Conference

The TAMIRA Study was represented at the Zimbabwe Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (ZSOG)-East, Central and Southern Africa College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (ECSACOG) Annual Joint Scientific Conference and Annual General Meeting, held in Harare from 19–21 August 2026. The conference brought together obstetricians and gynaecologists, healthcare professionals, researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders from across the region under the theme “Standardizing Obstetrics and Gynaecologic Care in the ECSA Region to Achieve Zero Preventable Deaths.”

The conference provided an important platform to share emerging evidence from TAMIRA, a multi-phase qualitative study focused on co-developing a contextually relevant intervention to strengthen healthcare professionals’ capacity to support women through menopause in Zimbabwe.

Two TAMIRA-related abstracts were selected for presentation. The first, “Educational Interventions for Healthcare Professionals to Improve Menopause Care: A scoping review of interventions transferable to the context of Zimbabwe,” was presented as an oral presentation. The presentation explored what can be learned from existing educational and training interventions for healthcare professionals and, importantly, how such approaches might be adapted for the Zimbabwean context. The second, "Menopause care readiness among midlife women and healthcare professionals in Zimbabwe: A multi-stakeholder needs assessment,” was presented as a poster. This work draws on TAMIRA’s needs assessment phase to examine the experiences, perspectives and readiness of both midlife women and healthcare professionals, helping to identify gaps and opportunities for improving menopause care within the health system. Excitingly, this poster was recognised as the 'Best Poster Presentation' at the forum.

Saurh Rusike Presents her Poster

The conference also provided valuable opportunities for networking and knowledge exchange with practitioners and researchers working across Zimbabwe and the wider East, Central and Southern African region. Conversations around healthcare professional training, continuing professional development, service delivery and the standardisation of care highlighted the potential for future collaboration around strengthening menopause knowledge and practice beyond Zimbabwe.

Having TAMIRA represented in a forum of this nature was particularly significant. Menopause care sits at the intersection of reproductive health, healthy ageing, primary care and women’s wellbeing, yet it remains comparatively under prioritised within many health systems. Bringing evidence on menopause care directly to a professional audience involved in shaping clinical practice, education and standards creates an opportunity to move the conversation beyond awareness towards strengthening the capacity of health professionals to provide appropriate, evidence-informed and contextually relevant care.

As TAMIRA progresses into its co-production and intervention development phases, opportunities to engage directly with the practitioners and professional bodies who influence everyday clinical practice will be increasingly important. The ZSOG-ECSACOG conference was therefore more than an opportunity to disseminate research findings: it was an opportunity to begin building the relationships and conversations needed to translate evidence into meaningful improvements in menopause care across the region.