First appointment – information giving
A fertility nurse will meet you during a video consultation lasting about 45 minutes. In some circumstances, it may be more beneficial to have this session as a face-to-face appointment. The team will explain if this is relevant to you.
At this appointment, the implications and process of the treatment regime will be explained to you in detail. We will also discuss the emotional support available, the risks and potential outcomes of each stage of treatment and the effects on your work and personal life.
You will be able to ask the nurse any questions that you have.
After this appointment, you will be registered on the Fertility Consent portal to allow you to complete the correct consent forms.
These forms are legal documents required by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority who regulate all IVF clinics in the United Kingdom.
It is essential that you complete this package, as we are unable to start treatment until all the necessary forms are completed.
This is a face-to-face appointment with a member of our medical team or one of our senior fertility nurses. You will be at the clinic for up to 2 hours.
If you are seeking treatment as a couple both partners must attend this appointment.
Second appointment: consent and planning dates
This is a face-to-face appointment with a member of our medical team or one of our senior fertility nurses. You will be at the clinic for up to 2 hours.
If you are seeking treatment as a couple both partners must attend this appointment.
Photo identification
It is a regulatory requirement that we have a copy of both you and your partner’s (if applicable) photographic identification prior to treatment.
Please may you bring either the original or a clear copy of your Passport or Driver’s License (no other form of Photographic Identification will be accepted).
It is mandatory that we have this information at your consent clinic so that we can book your treatment date.
The team will answer any further queries that you have, review your returned consent forms and make sure you are ready to commence your treatment cycle. If you are happy to proceed to treatment, you will complete the final treatment consent form.
A member of the nursing team will then help you to choose your dates for starting treatment. While we will do our best to accommodate your preference for a specific treatment date it is not always possible.
You will be given a treatment plan listing the medication regime, scan and procedure dates for you to refer to throughout your treatment. The fertility nurse will teach you how to do the injections and you will have a go at practicing this yourself.
During this session, we will provide you with:
- Your prescription for the fertility medicines.
- Your equipment pack. This includes all the needles, syringes and other equipment that you need for the fertility injections and a sharps disposal bin for your used needles.
Appointments for treatment
Occasionally, we might ask you both to come in for an appointment to update your consent form(s).
Getting time off work for appointments can be difficult. Some people find it helpful to discuss what is happening with their employer, others don’t. We can provide proof of your appointments if requested.
The minimum number of appointments are as follows. If you are having treatment as a couple then attendance of both partners is essential for the appointments in bold, although partners are welcome to attend at any point
- Information giving
- Consent appointments
- Starting scan
- Monitoring scan(s)
- Final scan
- Egg collection
- Embryo transfermonitoring scan(s)
- Final scan
- Egg collection
- Embryo transfer
Please remember that the treatment dates are only an estimate of how your body will respond to the drugs.
This means that we may have to alter the treatment dates in response to the scan results to ensure that you have the best chance of a successful outcome. This can sometimes be at very short notice.
Tests
Screening for HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C
This test is done for everyone pre-treatment. These viral infections have implications for individuals’ health and wellbeing as well as those of any child who can be infected during pregnancy and childbirth.
It is therefore valuable to be screened prior to planned fertility treatment so that if necessary appropriate management can be planned.
A positive result does not prevent you from undergoing fertility treatment but further assessment and or treatment is likely to be necessary before proceeding.
We are required to screen for these viral infections prior to storing embryos, sperm or eggs. We are currently unable to store embryos, sperm or eggs for couples where one or both partners test positive.
The screening tests for these infections will occasionally result in an equivocal or false positive result. A diagnosis of infection is not made until a formal diagnostic test confirms it.
You may require further blood tests for assessment of any fertility or medical problems prior to treatment. These tests will be explained to you as they are undertaken.
