How to Choose a Fertility Clinic?

Having a baby is a spectacular experience; however, not all couples succeed in conceiving naturally.

So, if you and your partner have been trying to conceive for some time but seem to fail every time, it’s time you visit a fertility specialist.

As sensitive as the matter is, choosing the correct fertility clinic is a big decision to make. Simply browsing through websites, reviews and ratings are just not enough. Instead, try narrowing down your search by knowing the appropriate ways of how to choose a fertility clinic.

To choose the perfect fertility clinic, you need to do thorough research and consider keeping in mind the below-mentioned list of factors:

1. Success Rate of the Clinic

As an individual of the digital generation, you will definitely check the ratings of your chosen fertility clinic on the internet. But, when dealing with such a sensitive issue, simply trusting information from the internet is not enough.

Check whether the fertility clinic offers treatment on intrauterine insemination, in vitro fertilisation, and necessary surgical procedures. Further, instead of relying too much on the advertised figures at face value, discuss the clinic's success rate in person with staff members.

2. Years of Experience of the Staff Members

When considering how to pick a fertility clinic, the years of experience of the fertility clinic and its staff members hold vital importance. Consider opting for a fertility clinic with experienced professionals who “specialise” in infertility treatments. You can also choose to visit the fertility clinic in person to get the best idea about its atmosphere.

Fertility clinics with high staff turnover resemble signs of bad management and can result in mistakes. A good fertility clinic that encompasses well-experienced doctors, nurses, lab staff, counsellors, and financial advisors is an ideal choice for your infertility treatment.

3. Technology Used and Facilities Offered

Make certain whether the fertility clinic offers a good array of fertility remedies. Also, consider if the clinic staffs are well aware of the latest technology that’s on board. Try to choose a fertility clinic which provides maximum convenience to all couples who are undergoing fertility treatment.

Taking into consideration the remarkable breakthroughs in medical science, today, most fertility clinics offer in-house staff and facilities to conduct advanced treatment procedures. Blastocyst culture, laser assisted hatching, cryopreservation/vitrification for sperms, embryoscope, oocyte and embryo preservation, are a few of them.

4. Distance of Clinic and Duration of Treatment

Infertility treatment requires long-term commitment as some procedures require a considerable completion period. Thus, when choosing a fertility clinic, consult with your doctor, whether it's you or your partner, who has to commit to more time in the treatment.

Another factor to consider is how far the fertility clinic is from your residence and how conveniently you can commute there. For example, if you choose a fertility clinic that is in another state, it will become necessary for you to make staying arrangements there till the treatment procedure gets over.

5. Factors to Consider for Fertility Specialists

Most fertility clinics assign one specialised doctor for each couple, while others may assign a few specialised doctors on a rotational basis along with one primary doctor. Whatever the scenario, both the setups have their unique advantages and disadvantages. 

Therefore, consider raising the following questions and to understand the following factors:

• Where and when was your doctor trained? Determine if they are a certified reproductive endocrinologist and for how many years they have been practising with infertility patients.
• In case you are specifically dealing with male infertility issues, make sure that your fertility clinic has an urologist on board.
• While selecting a fertility clinic, question the concerned authorities if they would accept your insurance. And, in case of hospitalisation, what are the things that your health insurance would cover?
• Also, consider questioning how long the existing staff members are working with the clinic. For instance, if you notice that multiple individuals have been working here for a long time, it's a sign that the working environment runs smoothly.
• Before finalising, do estimate how many reproductive endocrinologists work at the clinic and how many specialists will handle your case. However, if your case is quite complicated, then having a team working together is beneficial from your perspective.

6. Financing for Your Infertility Treatment

A well-organised fertility clinic will definitely have a separate group that exclusively handles all financial aspects. Furthermore, fertility treatment is pretty expensive; hence clear all your doubts about the different aspects of financing your overall treatment.

Therefore, ask the following questions before you settle:

• If they accept insurance, and what insurance do they accept?
• In case anyone's home is pretty far from the clinic, does the clinic offer any sort of discounted lodging options?
• In the case of in-vitro fertilisation, do they offer any refund program?
• In general, does the clinic provide or recommend a finance program?

Getting answers to these questions will help you plan your finance better and pre-plan it at the same time.

7. Fertility Clinic Lab and Procedures

In case of hyped curiosity, you can always enquire about the following factors:

• Is the lab open to all, or do they have any age bar on whom they operate on?
• Are all the procedures practised in a single clinic, or patients need to go elsewhere?
• Do they incorporate advanced technology in all their procedures or not?
• Does the fertility clinic have enough surgeons and staff to deal with complicated cases?

Irrespective of whatever your case may be, considering the factors mentioned above will help you better understand the efficiency of your chosen fertility clinic. 

In a nutshell, anytime you face difficulty in getting pregnant, just visiting your gynaecologist is not enough. To properly understand what's obstructing your pregnancy, seeking an expert's advice is essential; for that, you must visit a fertility clinic. However, just visiting any fertility clinic won’t get the job done perfectly, understanding how to choose a fertility clinic will. Therefore, sincerely consider all the factors as mentioned above and things to enquire about before deciding on the fertility clinic to settle for.