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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – One in eight couples struggle with infertility. While fertility clinics aren’t as “prevalent” as Starbucks, there are definitely many options to choose from. And unless your BFF or your OB/GYN points you in a certain direction, deciding where to direct your care can be difficult. Who you see and where you go, can be the difference between walking away with a baby and walking away with nothing more than a big bill. Dr. Jaime Knopman, MD, a reproductive endocrinologist with CCRM NY, a leading fertility clinic, provides advice on the 5 most important questions you should ask when looking for a fertility clinic:
1. Success Rates:
Fertility medicine is moving fast. To quote our friend Ferris Bueller “life moves pretty fast…if you don’t stop and look around once in a while you could miss it.” The same goes for fertility treatment! As a result you need to make sure wherever you go for treatment not only knows this but also practices fertility medicine on their toes. Being up to date with the newest techniques and latest procedures translates into success. Furthermore, you want to check the success rates of the clinic you are going and what they are doing to get those success rates (aka are they putting in multiple embryos to get pregnancy or are they able to achieve those success rates with a single embryo transfer). Although your goal may be to have a family, one healthy baby at a time is the safest way to go.
2. Practice Styles:
While we all went to medical school followed by residency and fellowship to become board certified Reproductive Endocrinologists, the way physicians practice medicine is VERY different. Some are talkers and some are quiet, some like to chat on the phone and some prefer to email. Some move fast and some move slow. Make sure that whom you select as a doctor matches your needs and personality. These partnerships can be lengthy; you want to make sure you find someone who has the “death do us part” type of feel. While you can certainly get a divorce if things get rocky, starting over puts you back at square one (minus some valuable time).
3. Take a number, we will see you in an hour:
Unfortunately many fertility clinics have started to resemble factories. Patients are shuttled in and out like cattle going down an assembly line. Waiting rooms are littered with patients and you can go an entire IVF cycle without seeing a physician who knows you by name. Before you commit to a specific center ask around about how the clinic functions and what previous patients who have been treated there have experienced. While it may not change your decision about where you decided to be treated, it will prepare you for what lies ahead.
4. Availability:
We all have busy lives and busy schedules. Trying to squeeze in time to chat with our mom can be a challenge. Therefore, it’s important that you know how the times that both your doctor and the fertility clinic will be available to not only speak to you but also to see you. Just like personalities you want to make sure that your schedule can effectively merge with their schedule.
5. Honesty is key:
Sugar coating the situation when it comes to your ability to have a child can become a “sour” situation. You need to make sure that the physician you are seeing is honest with your prognosis, the chance of the treatment being successful and the clinic’s ability to help you achieve your goal of having a baby. https://www.ccrmivf.com/
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