Dr Wendy Holden

Professional statement

Dr Wendy Holden is a highly esteemed consultant rheumatologist based in Basingstoke.

Before training in medicine, Dr Holden completed an Honours degree in Physiology and Biochemistry with Nutrition at Southampton University and then trained as an osteopath at the British School of Osteopathy, graduating with Honours. She later worked as an osteopath and osteopathic tutor for several years. Dr Holden studied medicine at St George’s Hospital Medical School in London and graduated in 1994 with Distinctions. She completed specialist training in rheumatology in the Oxford region and has had additional training in neurorehabilitation and medical pain management, including an MSc in Pain Management with Distinction from the University of Wales. She was appointed as a consultant rheumatologist at Basingstoke and North Hampshire NHS Foundation Trust in 2007 and now has an honorary consultant contract with the Trust. Dr Holden is currently working on her PhD in the Department of Psychology at Reading University, looking at the association between pain and sleep in osteoarthritis.

Dr Holden has notably been awarded a National Healthcare Champion award by the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society. Since completing medical training, she has extended an interest in complementary therapies with training in medical acupuncture. She has also prescribed medical cannabis to more than 4,000 patients via Curaleaf Clinic, where she works as a consultant rheumatologist and specialist in pain management. She is also a qualified yoga teacher and coach.

Dr Holden is also the Medical Advisor to Arthritis Action, a national charity that promotes self-management for people with arthritis. She has a British Menopause Society certificate in the Principles and Practice of Menopause Care and she has spoken extensively in the media and on webinars about all aspects of arthritis and pain management.

Her specialist areas in rheumatology are bone health, osteoporosis and fracture prevention, osteoarthritis, pain management, especially the mind-body connection and holistic medical care, inflammatory arthritis and women’s health around the menopause and perimenopause including menopausal arthralgia. She is particularly interested in self-management and lifestyle influences on pain and health. She is covered by all medical insurance companies.