How to Choose A Fertility Doctor
A large part of our daily routine at CFC is discussing Fertility Doctors with our clients- What you should be looking for, and how Fertility is different for everyone, and that you want to interview, and most importantly advocate for yourself throughout this most important process of selecting an Reproductive Endocrinologist.
Factors to Consider
The following are some important factors to consider when searching for your fertility doctor or service:
Success/pregnancy rates
Qualifications and experience of personnel
Types of patients being treated
Support services available
Cost
Convenience-Location
Recommendations & Reputation
Success Rates
To further your research, the success rates of reproductive clinics are available at the following links:
Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART)
It is important to note that these numbers are two to three years old and can sometimes be reported differently by different centers, so these figures should not be the only factor that you consider.
Sample Questions
The following are sample questions that may help you make an informed decision:
General Questions:
What procedures do you offer?
How much experience do you have in these procedures and what are your success rates?
What are your criteria for seeing patients (e.g.waiting list, age limits, single vs.married, etc.)?
What screening tests are required?
What is the time commitment?
Does the program meet and follow ASRM guidelines?
Does the program report its results to the SART Registry and the CDC?
Is the program a member of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology?
How many physicians will be involved in my care?
Are your physicians board certified in reproductive endocrinology and in good medical standing?
What types of counseling and support services are available?
Do you have an outline of the costs of the tests and procedures I may need?
What are your available payment options?
Is staff accessible to answer questions about treatment, forms, or payment?
Do you accept insurance?
What are the on-going storage costs of tissues (sperm, eggs, etc.)?
Surrogacy Specific Questions:
What are your requirements/screening regarding surrogates? ie, Number of pregnancies, number of c-sections, BMI, etc.
Are you open to using a protocol that an experienced surrogate has previously used (at another clinic), do you require medical records from pervious deliveries? If so, at what point?
Do you require surrogate (experienced) to travel to you for screening?
Will you accept previous psychological assessments
We hope that you will use this list as a guide when searching for a Fertility clinic.Our office is of course available to help you with any research you may want to do as well.CFC’s personal referral service will get right to work for you- Setting up appointments with various fertility clinics on your behalf.For further information on CFC’s programs, and services, please feel fre to email us at *** OR by calling us at *** *** ***
