HRT: GPs raise concern about “threatening and unprofessional” template letter for patients “refused” treatment

A template letter for patients who have been “refused” hormone replacement therapy to send to their GP warning of “litigation” has been criticised for being confrontational and inappropriate.

The GP and menopause specialist Louise Newson, who runs a private menopause clinic, posted the template letter for patients to send to “GPs who refuse to prescribe HRT” on the website she runs for patients called “My menopause doctor.”1

The letter, which was co-created with a medical negligence lawyer, was posted with a message telling patients that all they had to do was “copy and paste the letter . . . and edit to add your own information.”

GPs raised concerns about the “threatening and unprofessional” letter after Newson spoke at the annual conference of the Royal College of General Practitioners in Liverpool on 24 October, in a session entitled “Simple and safe prescribing of HRT for primary care.” In the session Newson discussed patients’ difficulties in getting HRT.

While many GPs praised …