Questions to ask your IVF clinic at initial consultation
Hi all,
I thought it might be helpful to let people know what kind of questions me and my husband asked during our initial consultations with various IVF clinics. Obviously make sure you do your own research, and tailor any questions to your specific situation and medical need!
What are your success rates that result in a live birth, for patients in a similar age bracket, and with medical conditions like I have?
Are you able to treat me? [1]
Are there any additional tests that you would recommend, before starting IVF?
Would you recommend that I take any particular supplements, or follow any specific diets prior to starting IVF? [2]
How many cycles do most patients in our situation need?
What IVF protocol do you recommend us and why?
If that protocol doesn’t work, would you change it for the next cycle, based on the result of the first cycle?
How will my response to stimulation be monitored, and what happens if I respond poorly, or too strongly?
What is your multiple birth rate? [3]
Are you open every day for treatment? [4]
What would be the cost of our treatment, including medication and any scans and blood tests required? What about if we need to do a ‘freeze all’ cycle, due to hyperstimulation?
Do you offer Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) as standard, or is this an additional cost?
What are the treatment add-ons available, and what is the cost of each?
Do you offer genetic testing, and is it recommended in our situation? What happens if all of the embryo’s come back as ‘abnormal’?
Additional questions to ask if your treatment will be taking place abroad:
When would we need to fly out to start treatment?
How long would we need to stay out there during, and after treatment?
How can we order medication if we don’t purchase it from you? Do you work with any pharmacies or clinics in the UK?
What happens if there is a medical emergency during treatment? Would I be taken to hospital? [5]
Will the doctor and coordinator I have for my initial consultation, be my doctor and coordinator throughout the treatment?
Can the doctors who will be treating me speak English, or will the coordinator need to translate?
Can you offer any recommendations for accommodation?
Do you offer any holistic therapies, such as acupuncture, to support treatment?
Footnotes:
[1] I added this question in, as one clinic wasn’t able to offer me treatment due to my medical history. Some clinics don’t treat you if your AMH is below a certain number, or if your BMI is too high. It’s worth checking, for these reasons.
[2] I would anticipate that a lot of clinics may say no to this, however I would recommend reading a book called ‘It Starts with the Egg’, which talks about how supplements, diet, and other things may help with IVF treatment.
[3] A high multiple birth rate can be concerning, particularly if a clinic relies on transferring multiple embryo’s to achieve a successful pregnancy and live birth. It’s not okay for patients health to be put at risk, and the risk of transferring multiple embryo’s should be discussed in depth before going ahead with this.
[4] This is important as if, according to your cycle, your transfer should happen on a Sunday and they aren’t open, this could negatively impact the success of your cycle.
[5] Please make sure you take out medical travel insurance, specifically for IVF treatment abroad. I searched on Google and found a company that was very reasonable in cost. It’s important to note that you should also take out ‘normal’ travel insurance too, as the medical insurance doesn’t cover anything other than the treatment you will be receiving and any emergency treatment as a result.