Moderate-to-severe vasomotor symptoms (VMS) track with cardiovascular disease, metabolic change, disrupted sleep, and new-onset depression and anxiety during the menopause transition. Clinicians who read this signal early treat the whole patient.
This on-demand activity is the recording of a live, interactive ACOOG workshop held October 1, 2026. Five modules move from physiology to prescription to the patient conversation:
- VMS as a Whole-Health Signal
- Building the Treatment Algorithm
- The Complex Patient
- Engaging the Patient
- Panel Q&A, Synthesis, and Commitment to Change
Target audience: Physicians (DOs and MDs), nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), and all clinicians who care for women in menopause, including OB/GYNs, family physicians, and internists.
Activity Chair
Sadaf Lodhi, DO, FACOOG, FACOG, MSCP, IF
CEO, Femme Vie Health
Menopause specialist and podcast host. Chappaqua, New York.
Carolyn Moyers, DO, FACOG
Founder, Sky Women's Health
Fort Worth, Texas.
Jessica Shepherd, MD, MBA, FACOG
Chief Medical Officer, Hers
Author of Generation M. Founder, Sanctum Med + Wellness. Dallas, Texas.
Have a question for the faculty?
Email your question to ACOOG Education, and we will share it with the faculty.
cme@acoog.org
ACOOG requires each planner and author to identify all financial relationships with ineligible companies and mitigates risk of bias using a series of strategies for relevant relationships. Unless otherwise noted below, ACOOG, ACOOG staff, planners, and faculty for this activity have no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
- Jessica Shepherd, MD, faculty: clinical advisor for OPositiv, Natural Cycles, Pvolve, Ora, and Hologic. Chief Medical Director for Hers/Hims. These relationships have been mitigated.
Those participating in this activity will receive information that should allow them to:
- Identify moderate-to-severe VMS as a marker of cardiovascular, metabolic, and mental health risk, and order the appropriate workup for each domain.
- Match hormonal and nonhormonal therapies to the right candidate based on safety profile and contraindications.
- Develop an individualized prescription and monitoring plan for patients with cardiovascular, metabolic, and psychological comorbidity.
- Apply shared decision-making to elicit patient priorities, address treatment hesitancy, and confirm understanding.
Accreditation and Credit Designation
The accreditation statements cannot be condensed, combined, or altered except for type of activity and credit hours.
CME Accreditation
The American College of Osteopathic Obstetricians and Gynecologists is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association to provide osteopathic continuing medical education for physicians.
The American College of Osteopathic Obstetricians and Gynecologists is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
CME Credit Designation
The American College of Osteopathic Obstetricians and Gynecologists designates this program for a maximum of 2.5 AOA Category 1-A credits and will report CME and specialty credits commensurate with the extent of the physician’s participation in this activity.
The American College of Osteopathic Obstetricians and Gynecologists designates this enduring material for a maximum of 2.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.
Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
ACOG Cognate Credit(s)
The American College of Osteopathic Obstetricians and Gynecologists designates this activity for Category 1 College Cognate Credits equal to the number of AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ claimed by the participant. ACOG recognizes AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ to be equivalent to ACOG Cognate Credits.
NPs, PAs & CNMs
The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB) recognizes activities approved for Category 1-A credit through the American Osteopathic Association and Category 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ as providing advanced practice CE content hours for applicants seeking renewal through continuing education credit.
The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) recognizes activities approved for Category 1-A credit through the American Osteopathic Association and AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ as Regular Category 1 CME for national certification maintenance.
The Certificate Maintenance Program of the American Midwifery Certification Board accepts AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ to satisfy its contact hours requirement.
All NPs, PAs, CNMs and other health professionals participating in this activity will receive a certificate of completion commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. ACOOG strongly recommends all non-physician health professionals check with their certification/licensing organizations to confirm credit reciprocity.
This activity is supported by an educational grant from Astellas.
Format and System Requirements
This is a video activity. An internet-connected device (computer or mobile) with high-speed access is required. Compatible with most popular web browsers. JavaScript and cookies must be enabled.
Requirements for Successful Completion
- Complete the pre-test.
- Watch the full workshop recording.
- Pass the post-test (70% or greater).
- Complete the activity evaluation.
- Claim credit.
Earn more credit · ACOOG MicroQI
Turn workshop learning into practice
The workshop ends with one ask: name one practice behavior to adopt within a week. ACOOG MicroQI turns that commitment into a small, measured quality improvement (QI) project and awards credit for it.
Up to 5 CME credits You pick the focus 2 to 8 weeks
Pick one change, for example:
- Ask about VMS at every visit. Document hot flashes and night sweats for every patient aged 40 to 65 in a structured electronic health record (EHR) field.
- Offer evidence-based treatment. Document a discussion of hormone and nonhormone options for every patient with moderate-to-severe VMS.
- Reassess at three months. Schedule a follow-up within three months for every patient who starts VMS therapy.
Five steps
Write an aim. Pick one measure. Set a baseline. Test the change with a Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle. Remeasure and decide whether to adopt, adapt, or drop the change.
Get started at acoog.org/microqi
Medical Judgement
This activity is for educational purposes only, offered by ACOOG. Physicians must rely on their medical knowledge, experience, and patient relationships for clinical decisions.
Use of Artificial Intelligence
The closed captions and summaries provided in this content are automatically generated by artificial intelligence (AI). While AI can enhance accessibility and comprehension, it is not infallible and may produce errors. Please keep this in mind as you engage with and apply the content.
Grievances: Any registrant finding evidence that the continuing medical education activity presented is inappropriate with regard to facilities, materials, content, or who observes any unacceptable promotion by a commercial interest may submit a grievance in writing to ACOOG, PO Box 17598, Fort Worth, TX 76102. Unresolved issues regarding this activity will require a formal written complaint to the AOA Division of CME, 142 East Ontario Street, Chicago, IL 60611.
Privacy policy: This activity complies with ACOOG’s privacy policies.
Data use: Data collected as part of this activity may be analyzed as part of educational research to study the effectiveness of educational interventions on health care, population health, health care providers and others, or to identify additional needs and gaps for future interventions.
Refunds: Refunds are not available for this educational product.