Changing the change with Carol Mitchell

Almost a decade before Sinai Health announced its unprecedented campaign to raise funds for a world-class Centre for Mature Women’s Health, Carol Mitchell, known as “Mitch”, was speaking out about the health challenges faced by women as they age.

For Mitch, it all started with Dr. Wendy Wolfman — one of Canada’s leading experts in mature women’s health — and a conversation about how gaps in care for women widen as they age due to limited education and research in the field. Mitch learned that less than nine per cent of Canadian medical school programs adequately cover women’s health and one in three women aren’t aware that treatments exist for symptoms of perimenopause and menopause.

Mitch realized more funding was needed to close this health equity gap, and that she could help.

“I began to know Dr. Wolfman and appreciate her expertise,” says Mitch. “I wanted her to be able to continue and expand her research and mentorship of young talented doctors in this important area.”

Mitch committed $1 million to establish a Chair focused on much-needed education and training in mature women’s health. A Chair position provides stable ongoing funding that allows institutions to recruit and retain experts in their respective field and conduct research without having to wait for external grants. In honour of Mitch’s transformational donation and the work it would make possible, it was named the Carol Mitchell Chair in Mature Women’s Health.

Mitch was convinced this was a critical investment. But when she began to make her support public, she encountered an unexpected challenge. She noticed many of her female colleagues and friends did not want to be associated with aging and menopause, and convincing other middle-aged women to talk about it proved incredibly difficult. The word “menopause” was a taboo word, filled with shame.

It is a sentiment many share. Menopause and aging are often surrounded by shame and stigma — if talked about at all. A few generations ago, menopause was only whispered about as the “the change”. Mitch wanted to change that. She began using the phrase “we need to change the change!”

Unperturbed by this challenge, Mitch smiled and dialed — hosting educational events together with Dr. Wolfman and patient advocates like Trish Barbato — and invited women to support the Chair. She described how tough these early days were and how it changed when she began opening her events to include couples and families. Men were shocked by what many women suffered through on a daily basis, and with a new focus on menopause as a family issue, more began to extend their support.

After offering another $500,000 to match new donations to the Chair, Mitch decided to change the name of the Chair to the Carol Mitchell Chair in Menopause.

“I believe that to show how passionate and dedicated you are, you must be hard-hitting and call it what it is. That’s why I changed the name,” says Mitch. “This is how you normalize the conversation.”

Today, the movement has gained incredible momentum. Dr. Wolfman is now the inaugural holder of the Carol Mitchell Chair in Menopause and has trained bright young talent from around the world through Sinai Health’s fellowship program in Mature Women’s Health and Menopause — some of whom have stayed on as full-time staff at Sinai Health. Throughout it all, the Chair has become a driving force for menopause education and awareness not just at Sinai, but in Canada and beyond.

“I feel really proud of this Chair,” says Mitch. “I’m proud my brainchild and passion provided the springboard to launch the campaign for the Centre for Mature Women’s Health, which will help not only menopausal women, but also their spouses and families — at home, at work and in society for generations to come.”

We are grateful to Mitch for her leadership support of Sinai Health. To learn more about the ongoing campaign to support care, research and education in mature women’s health click here.