Menopause Society Certified Practitioner in Arizona: A Guide

If you are in your 40s or 50s and your hot flashes, sleep, mood, or cycles have changed, you may have already discovered how hard it is to find someone who truly specializes in menopause. Many women in Scottsdale, Phoenix, Tucson, and across Arizona search for a “menopause specialist” and find very few clear answers.

One of the most reliable signals of menopause expertise is the MSCP credential. This guide explains what it means, how clinicians earn it, why it matters, and how to find and evaluate an MSCP-level provider in Arizona, in person or by telehealth.

What is a Menopause Society Certified Practitioner (MSCP)?

A Menopause Society Certified Practitioner (MSCP) is a licensed healthcare professional who has passed The Menopause Society’s competency exam in midlife women’s health. According to The Menopause Society, the credential recognizes clinicians who have demonstrated expertise in caring for women through perimenopause and beyond.

The Society first created its certification in 2002 “to set the standards for menopause practice,” per its certification page. For years the credential was called NCMP (NAMS Certified Menopause Practitioner). When the North American Menopause Society became The Menopause Society on July 11, 2023, the credential was renamed MSCP, as reported in the Society’s announcement. If you see NCMP after a clinician’s name, it refers to the same program under its older title.

MSCP is a certification, not a medical specialty or a license. It is earned on top of an existing license, which means an MSCP may be a physician, nurse practitioner, physician assistant, nurse, nurse midwife, or pharmacist.

How does a clinician become MSCP certified?

A clinician becomes MSCP certified by holding a current healthcare license and passing a proctored, 100-question exam. The 2026 MSCP Candidate Handbook lays out the requirements:

Requirement	Details
Eligibility	Licensed healthcare professionals, including nurses, nurse midwives, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, physicians, and physician assistants
Exam format	100 multiple-choice questions, 2 hours, remote proctored
Content areas	Physiology of the menopause transition (19%), symptoms and concerns (20%), midlife health disorders (21%), treatment options (21%), preventive care and counseling (19%)
Testing windows (2026)	June and October
Passing standard	A scaled score of 75

The exam balances science with practice. Nearly half of it focuses on treatment options, preventive care, and counseling, which are the conversations that shape your day-to-day care.

Do MSCPs have to recertify?

Yes. The MSCP credential is time-limited and must be renewed, which helps ensure certified clinicians keep up with new research and new treatments.

According to The Menopause Society’s certification maintenance rules, credentials expire on December 31 of the third year after they are earned. To renew, a clinician must either complete 45 credit hours of accredited continuing education in midlife women’s health (at least 15 of them from The Menopause Society) or pass the exam again.

That matters in a field that changes quickly. In the last few years alone, the FDA has approved two new non-hormonal hot flash medications and revised the safety labeling on hormone therapy.

Why is it so hard to find a menopause specialist?

It is hard because most clinicians receive very little formal menopause training, even as tens of millions of women move through midlife. The gap is well documented.

• A 2023 needs assessment published in Menopause surveyed US OB-GYN residency program directors and found that only 31.3% of programs had a dedicated menopause curriculum, as reported by Healio. Program directors rated their satisfaction with current menopause training at just 3.75 out of 10.
• In a 2024 study in Menopause of OB-GYN, internal medicine, and family medicine residents, participants answered only 60.8% of menopause knowledge questions correctly before a dedicated curriculum. After the training, that rose to 79.1%, which shows how much focused education changes clinical knowledge.
• The FDA notes that about 41 million US women were ages 45 to 64 in 2020, yet only about 2 million women ages 46 to 65 received hormone therapy prescriptions that year.

The National Institute on Aging reports that the average age of menopause in the US is 52, and that menopause-related symptoms can last two to eight years. That is a long stretch of life to navigate without a clinician who has focused training.

How do I find a Menopause Society Certified Practitioner in Arizona?

The fastest way is The Menopause Society’s free Find a Menopause Practitioner directory. You can search by zip code or by telehealth availability in your state.

• Search by zip code to find in-person clinicians near you in Scottsdale, Phoenix, Tucson, Flagstaff, or anywhere in Arizona.
• Search by telehealth and choose Arizona to see clinicians who offer virtual visits to Arizona residents.
• Look for the MSCP designation in each listing. The directory includes both Society members and MSCPs, and membership alone is not the same as certification.
• Remember what is not listed. The directory only shows members and MSCPs who asked to be included and who are accepting new patients. The Society also states that it does not endorse or recommend the practitioners listed.

Because not every MSCP appears in the directory, it is also reasonable to check a practice’s provider bios or simply ask a clinic whether any of its providers hold the credential.

What questions should I ask a menopause provider?

Ask questions that reveal training, approach, and follow-through. The Menopause Society advises looking for a provider who listens to your needs, makes it comfortable to discuss symptoms, answers your questions, and respects your decisions.

• Are you a Menopause Society Certified Practitioner, or what menopause-specific training do you have?
• How do you decide whether hormone therapy is appropriate, and which dose, route, and form you recommend?
• What non-hormonal options do you offer if hormones are not right for me?
• Which labs or screenings do you order, and how do you use the results?
• Do you prescribe FDA-approved products, compounded products, or both? How do you explain the difference?
• How often will we follow up, and how can I reach you between visits?

For a deeper checklist, see our perimenopause symptoms guide.

What does MSCP-level menopause care look like?

MSCP-level care is individualized, evidence-based, and grounded in current guidance, not a one-size-fits-all prescription. It weighs your symptoms, health history, and goals against the full range of hormonal and non-hormonal options.

Individualized hormone therapy. The Menopause Society’s (then NAMS) 2022 Hormone Therapy Position Statement remains the Society’s current official guidance on hormone therapy, and standards are under active discussion as new evidence and FDA labeling changes emerge. It concluded that the benefits of hormone therapy outweigh the risks for most healthy symptomatic women who are younger than 60 or within 10 years of menopause onset. It also emphasized choosing the appropriate dose, duration, regimen, and route for each woman. In February 2026, the FDA approved labeling changes that removed cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, and probable dementia from the boxed warning on six menopausal hormone therapy products. You can read more in our article, Is HRT safe?

Non-hormonal prescription options. For women who cannot or prefer not to use hormones, two FDA-approved medications target the brain pathways behind hot flashes:

• Fezolinetant (Veozah) was approved by the FDA in May 2023. It blocks the NK3 receptor. In December 2024, the FDA added a boxed warning for rare but serious liver injury and requires liver blood tests before starting, monthly for the first three months, and at months 6 and 9.
• Elinzanetant (Lynkuet) was approved by the FDA on October 24, 2025, for moderate to severe hot flashes due to menopause. It is a once-daily pill that blocks both NK1 and NK3 receptors.

Whole-person care. An MSCP-level plan also looks at sleep, bone health, heart health, sexual health, mood, and metabolism, because menopause affects far more than hot flashes. The FDA notes that hot flashes affect around 80% of menopausal women, but they are only one piece of the picture.

Can I see a menopause specialist by telehealth in Arizona?

Yes. Arizona law permits telehealth, which means women in rural towns and busy Phoenix-area neighborhoods alike can see a menopause-trained clinician without driving across the Valley.

Under A.R.S. 36-3602, your provider must obtain your verbal or written informed consent before a telehealth visit, and the care remains subject to Arizona’s scope-of-practice rules. Clinicians licensed in another state must generally register with the appropriate Arizona board and follow Arizona standards of care under A.R.S. 36-3606. When choosing a telehealth provider, confirm that they are licensed or registered to treat patients in Arizona.

Some parts of care still happen in person, such as lab draws, mammograms, and bone density scans. A good telehealth practice will coordinate those locally.

How does Amsara Health approach menopause care in Arizona?

Amsara Health is a concierge integrative telehealth practice based in Scottsdale, serving adults across Arizona. Hormone care is led by Dr. Mia Chorney, DNP, FNP-BC, MSCP, our Cofounder and Chief Medical Officer and a Menopause Society Certified Practitioner. She is joined by Dr. Tamara Djurisic, MD, a board-certified family medicine physician with more than 20 years of experience who focuses on menopause, hormone therapy, and female sexual health and is a member of The Menopause Society.

Your first visit is a consultation and full history. Labs are ordered afterward, and your follow-up visit reviews results and builds a plan with you. If appropriate for you, that plan may include hormonal, non-hormonal, lifestyle, and supportive care. Amsara prescribes FDA-approved non-hormonal options such as Veozah (fezolinetant) and Lynkuet (elinzanetant) when appropriate, alongside individualized hormone therapy, and orders the liver blood tests that Veozah requires. Your provider will determine what is safe and suitable based on your health history. Amsara is a direct-pay practice and does not take commercial insurance, although insurance may still cover prescriptions and some labs.

Learn more about concierge menopause care in Arizona, review our pricing and membership options, or book a discovery call to see whether Amsara is the right fit.

Frequently asked questions

If you are weighing whether hormone therapy is right for you, our guide Is HRT safe? walks through what the current evidence says.

Sources

• The Menopause Society. Certification Examination. menopause.org, 2026.
• The Menopause Society. The Menopause Society Certified Practitioner (MSCP) Program 2026 Candidate Handbook. menopause.org, 2025.
• The Menopause Society. Certification Maintenance. menopause.org, 2026.
• The Menopause Society. Choosing a Healthcare Practitioner. menopause.org.
• The Menopause Society. Find a Menopause Practitioner. portal.menopause.org.
• The Menopause Society. The North American Menopause Society is now The Menopause Society. EurekAlert!, 2023.
• Healio. Most OB/GYN residency programs in US lack dedicated menopause curriculum (reporting Allen JT, et al., Menopause). Healio, 2023.
• Vesco KK, Brooks NB, Francisco MC, et al. Resident training to optimize patient-focused menopause management: a multispecialty menopause curriculum to enhance knowledge and preparedness. Menopause, 2024.
• The North American Menopause Society. 2022 Hormone Therapy Position Statement (press release; current official guidance). menopause.org, 2022.
• US Food and Drug Administration. FDA Approves Labeling Changes for Menopausal Hormone Therapy Products. fda.gov, 2026.
• US Food and Drug Administration. FDA Approves Novel Drug to Treat Moderate to Severe Hot Flashes Caused by Menopause. fda.gov, 2023.
• US Food and Drug Administration. FDA adds warning about rare occurrence of serious liver injury with use of Veozah (fezolinetant). fda.gov, 2024.
• Bayer. Lynkuet (elinzanetant) approved in the US for treatment of moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms due to menopause. bayer.com, 2025.
• National Institute on Aging. What Is Menopause? nia.nih.gov, reviewed 2024.
• Arizona State Legislature. A.R.S. 36-3602: Delivery of health care through telehealth; requirements. azleg.gov.
• Arizona State Legislature. A.R.S. 36-3606: Out-of-state health care providers; telehealth registration. azleg.gov.

This article is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for individual medical advice. Talk with a licensed provider about your specific situation.

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