Following the phenomenal success of the sold out inaugural National Menopause Summit in Dublin, the National Menopause Summit Cork supported by M&S is announced to take place in the historic venue of Cork City Hall on Friday October 20th 2023.
Featuring leading advocates, clinicians, facilitators and professionals in the area of perimenopause and menopause, this landmark full day masterclass in menopause will be held during the same week as World Menopause Day which is marked annually on October 18th.
General Practitioner and educator Ennis-based Dr Máire Finn will also speaks at the event. Dr Finn, in partnership with Irish Life Health the Official Health Insurance Partner of the summit, will present on menopause and mental health advising the audience on how best to manage brain fog, anxiety and stress.
Menopause champion, journalist and broadcaster Gráinne Seoige returns as compère and moderator for the Cork summit and will be joined by the national event’s guest speaker, the renowned menopause awareness pioneer and one of the UK’s most respected broadcasters and journalists Mariella Frostrup. Mariella’s groundbreaking 2018 BBC1 documentary ‘The Truth about Menopause’ was one of the first documentaries on menopause, breaking the taboo and speaking honestly about her own menopause experience. Channelling her passion for women’s rights and empowerment, Mariella authored the book ‘Cracking the Menopause: While Keeping Yourself Together’ which separates the myths from the reality and offers expertise, hope and advice for all affected by perimenopause and menopause.
On the announcement of this October’s Cork summit, Sinéad McNamara founder and co-director of the National Menopause Summit comments “Due to the remarkable success of last March’s inaugural National Menopause Summit supported by M&S in Dublin city centre, coupled with the ever growing demand and need for fact-based menopause education and personal and professional support in Ireland, we are delighted to bring the National Menopause Summit Cork to Cork City Hall on Friday October 20th 2023 . This national summit centres around World Menopause Day, which falls on two days previous on Wednesday October 18.”
“We are delighted to announce the phenomenal Mariella Frostrup as the Cork summit’s international guest speaker. As the chair of the UK’s Menopause Mandate and having fronted a critically acclaimed documentary and no-holds-barred book on menopause, Mariella is a true menopause advocate and menopause awareness champion and we are honoured to welcome her to our summit this October.”
The National Menopause Summit Cork’s full day event will continue to shift the narrative by debunking myths & taboos, providing inclusive fact based information, advocating for support across both the personal and professional arenas and providing a platform of understanding and respect to ensure no one suffers needlessly at this oftentimes highly challenging and transitional stage of life.
Also championing for a new norm across the Irish workplace, the National Menopause Summit Cork will advocate and empower the introduction of inclusive, compassionate and sympathetic work policies to ensure all feel supported and enabled to forge forward in their careers, thus stemming the flow of women choosing to exit the workforce, or disregard opportunities for advancement, due to the lack of these crucial supports.
In addition to Mariella Frostrup and Gráinne Seoige, the Cork summit’s powerful voices and exceptional speaker line-up also includes Dr Brenda Moran, portfolio GP with a special interest in women’s health and sexual health; Dr Karen Soffe, GP with a special interest in women’s health; Dr Caoimhe Hartley, clinical lead Rotunda Hospital Menopause Clinic, founder & CEO Menopause Health; Dr Sumi Dunne, GP and clinical lecturer in General Practice, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) and the GP expert on RTE’s Operation Transformation; Loretta Dignam, founder and CEO of The Menopause Hub; Shalini Wiseman, chartered physiotherapist in pelvic health and continence; Joanne Healy, head of group employee relations at Bank of Ireland and Katie Ridge, head of employer relations at Adare Human Resource Management.
The National Menopause Summit Cork supported by M&S will also feature moderated panel discussions with leading experts in the areas of menopause in the workplace and menopause care to incorporate equality, diversity and inclusivity. Key topics for discussion will include nutrition, mental health, posture, women’s physical wellness and inclusivity in menopause care. Full agenda and additional speakers and panellists will be announced over the coming months.
Frances Deasy, head of marketing and sales at M&S Ireland comments on their lead sponsorship of the Cork summit “Following on from the inaugural menopause summit in the Mansion House in April, M&S are delighted to be continuing the journey as lead sponsor of the first menopause summit in Cork. We are proud advocates of leading the conversation around perimenopause and menopause in our workplace. We encourage open and frank conversations to shift the perceptions for our colleagues and normalise what is a natural biological process.
We look forward to another insightful day of incredible speakers on October 20th in Cork City Hall.”
Dr Máire Finn graduated from NUIG in 1993 and achieved her MICGP in 1998.
She has worked as a principal General Practitioner in Ennis since that time. She has an active role in all levels of medical education and mentorship, taking students and interns from UL and RCSI.
In 2006 she became one of the only female trainers on the Midwest GP training scheme. She is a proud START doctor since it’s inception.
She recently formalised the menopause care she has always provided by starting a specialty clinic in her surgery. This has allowed her to train and mentor other GPs in menopause care.
When settled into her practice in Ennis she was afforded the opportunity to develop her passions for women’s and family health. She found that a patient’s needs could only be truly met with time, listening and compassion.
Since 2002 she has become the voice of medicine and health advocacy in the mid-west and is regular contributor her local radio station, Clare FM.
RTÉ offered an opportunity to expand her reach in 2018, a hugely successful move for Máire who is now a regular medical contributor on radio and TV principally Today with Claire Byrne and the Today Show on RTE 1
Máire has published several articles both scholarly and opinion pieces. She has always been an advocate for better access to healthcare and inclusivity in all aspects of life.