Care during menopause: Comparison of a women's health practice and traditional care

Despite the growth in primary care-based women's health centers, little is known about the characteristics of women's health patients and the quality of care provided in women's health centers versus traditional practices. Ou r objective waste compare a women's health practice and a general internal medicine practice on issues-of care during menopause. A cross-sectional sur vey was administered simultaneously to patients aged 50-70 and their primar y care physicians in a women's health practice and an affiliated general in ternal medicine practice. The survey asked patients about health behaviors, past and current hormone use, menopausal symptoms, and attitudes about men opause. Physicians were asked to estimate their patients' attitudes. Patien ts in women's health practices were younger, more likely to be smokers, and more likely to have had a prior hysterectomy. Women's health patients were somewhat more likely to report concerns related to menopausal symptoms. Wo men's health patients and patients attending the general internal medicine practice reported similar rates of past or current use of hormone therapy, after adjusting for prior hysterectomy and age. Physicians in women's healt h and general medicine were similar in their ability to estimate their pati ents' attitudes. In the general internal medicine practice,female physician s tended to better estimate their patients' attitudes than their male colle agues. Patients seeking care in a women's health practice differed in sympt oms and concerns about the menopause compared with patients in a traditiona l primary care setting. Physicians' understanding of patients' menopausal c oncerns did not differ between the two practices. However, there may be gen der differences in physicians' understanding of patients' concerns.