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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – Along with many other communities, the 1 in 8 couples struggling with infertility have been greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to a number of initial unknowns and precautionary guidelines, IVF, IUI, and all other fertility cycles and procedures were initially postponed or altogether cancelled. This creates a bigger problem than just feeling disappointed: Infertility patients have worked very hard at family-building for years, and just when they sought medical assistance to help fulfill their human right and biological calling to expand their families, the rug was pulled out from under them. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this innate desire to become pregnant has been forcibly put on hold.
In most cases associated with infertility, time is not a luxury, just as it’s not for those facing other medical diseases. To press “pause” on this life goal is nearly a mental and physical impossibility for these men and women. Halting infertility treatments is not the right answer for this community. Here are five reasons why fertility treatments are medically essential:
- Building a family is a human right. Reproductive rights are defined as basic rights of all couples and individuals to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing, and timing of their children and to have the information and means to do so. This also includes the right to attain the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health. To put it bluntly, there is nothing “elective” about fertility patients wanting to have a baby. Building a family is at the core of our patients’ lives and hearts. There is nothing more essential to our humanity than the right to reproduce.
- We all have a biological clock. The term “biological clock,” though often misunderstood, exists for a reason in both men and women. The ability to conceive affects women much more strongly than men because there is a decrease in the quantity and quality of oocytes, or eggs, over time. This decline can start as early as 28 years old, and typically speaking, starts to drop off more precipitously after the age of 35. This is why an indefinite delay of infertility treatments can permanently decrease a patient’s ability to build a family. Depending on an individual’s clinical situation, even 2-4 months postponement can make a large difference in their prognosis and success rates.
- Infertility is a disease. Even in the best of times, there is no room in society to say that fertility treatments are elective. Infertility is a disease, plain and simple, and on a fundamental level, it deserves insurance coverage and respect, as do all medically classified disease states including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, amongst many others. This has always been true, and we in the reproductive medicine community are happy that there is more awareness and openness today.
- Safety is the standard. There will never be a perfect time for anything to restart in today’s world. However, after careful reflection, studying, researching, and collaborating, we believe that it is, in fact, safe, rational, and necessary to start treatments now. Safety and preventing harm have always been our top priority, and even more so now with strict COVID-19-induced office protocols. Here are some examples of what my practice is doing right now to limit risk and protect our staff and patients:
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- Consultations are all virtual through TeleMedicine.
- We are limiting in-person appointments and spacing them out to keep a minimum number of patients in the office at one time. Everyone must wear masks at all times.
- We are stringently deep-cleaning in between appointments.
- We are requiring universal temperature screening for patients and staff alike.
- Lastly, we are, unfortunately, not allowing any support people- including spouses and partners- to accompany patients on their in-person visits.
Equally as important, our care will not drain resources from the healthcare system. In fact, we have donated large amounts of PPE to our local hospitals to aid in the care of those who are acutely ill and those healthcare personal taking care of them.
5. Pregnancy will continue. Much is still unknown about the risks of COVID-19 to pregnancy and the baby. The CDC has stated that pregnant women share the same risks associated with COVID-19 as the non-pregnant population. No one, including the CDC or ACOG, the surgeon general, state departments of health or any physician group, is telling women who do not have fertility problems that they cannot try to get pregnant right now. Our patients should not be told that either.
As a healthcare provider who treats patients navigating infertility every day, I can tell you that putting infertility in the category of “non-essential” is not only heartbreaking, it’s inaccurate and unjust. Family-building, simply put, is the beautiful, natural, earth-given right of every human being. Our patients put their trust in us to help them achieve this basic human right. For our patients and others who wish to pursue this dream, family-building is, undoubtedly, essential.
Dr. Joshua Hurwitz is a Partner in Reproductive Endocrinology at Reproductive Medicine Associates of Connecticut and is board-certified in both Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility.