Stanford Medicine Fertility & Reproductive Health

Lorace Manalo

☆☆☆☆☆4.0· 11 months ago

Verified

I’ve been working with Stanford Fertility since 2017 (2017 to 2023) where my now late husband and I were fortunately able to conceive two children under Dr. Nakajima and team’s care. 2017/2018 IVF Journey: Our family building journey began in 2017, when my late husband and I were referred to us by our oncologist. We had plans to bank my husband’s sperm before he underwent chemotherapy. Based on both our medical history, tests, sperm analysis, Dr. Nakajima recommended IVF for our situation. At the time, I was 38 years old and worked for a company that had basic medical coverage and minimal fertility coverage. I met with a financial counselor that reviewed my medical and fertility coverage and advised me on how many IVF cycles I was covered for which was 3 cycles. She didn’t mention the costs for fertility medications and I was only really covered for 1 cycle. Billing was a nightmare and I was constantly getting calls from Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital to pay my bills while I was still trying to resolve some billing mishaps. We opted for genetic testing to avoid passing on a gene that caused my husband’s cancer. When we met with the genetic counselor a couple months later, she did not know beforehand about what genetic testing we needed which delayed the start of my IVF cycles by approximately 6 months as genetic testing probes needed to be developed to screen the embryos. The delay was frustrating. Aside from the financial and billing issues, Dr. Nakajima’s team did a great job laying out our next steps, what injections I should take and when, monitoring appointments needed before egg retrieval, Day 1 thru 5 embryo development updates. Once we got a euploid embryo, Dr. Nakajima advised what procedures I should do to maximize my chances of a successful embryo transfer and implantation. This resulted in my son who is now 5 years old. 2022/2024Journey: My husband passed away while I was pregnant with my first child. I still had my husband’s sperm stored at Stanford and I decided to try IVF again in 2021 at the age of 41. Due to my advanced age I thought that going to a different clinic (NOVA IVF) would increase my chances. I did two cycles out of pocket that did not yield a good embryo. I gave up. In 2022, I joined a company with excellent fertility benefits so I decided to go back to Dr. Nakajima. He put me on a different IVF protocol based on my latest fertility testing results, my age, and history. My billing experience was so much better and the new genetic counselor was a lot friendlier. Same as before, the team informed me of next steps, what meds to order and when to take them. I made sure to prepare myself mentally that my chances were very slim to have a euploid embryo at my age of 43. First cycle did not yield a good embryo. Second cycle, I got a message on a Saturday from the genetics counselor about my results which I thought was odd for a Saturday, but was great because I was anxiously waiting for some news. Success! I got a euploid embryo and I transferred a few months later when I was ready. Napping on me now is my 7 week old daughter. Dr. Nakajima and team has helped me fulfill my family building goals and dreams. I consider myself very lucky. Throughout the whole process I knew my chances were slim considering my advance age, and I already prepared myself to hear bad news at each step since IVF you have limited control of the outcome. Dr. Nakajima, thank you so much and it was great working with you and all the cheerful nurses at my monitoring appointments, egg retrieval procedures.

Ginger Luna

☆☆☆☆☆5.0· 12 months ago

Verified

The process felt painless ! My care team was so kind, I think my only not pleasant interaction was with the short /cold anesthesiologist . But it was fine considering horror stories I’ve heard from other clinics. But other than that everyone was so warm,answered all my questions before I went down rabbit holes and even supported me through an issue with an Alto delivery. I felt like they genuinely cared about my well-being.

madhavi kadam

☆☆☆☆☆1.0· a year ago

Verified

The worst experience ever. Keep away from this facitility. You will be waiting for hours to reach customer service even in case of emergency. They will never give proper info even if u reached them after lot of waiting. For my first appointment , the nurse called me 10 mins before appointment and asked to fill the questionnaire or the appointment will be cancelled. I waited for this appointment for more than a month. This is the most pathetic medical system i have ever seen.

Samantha Chung

☆☆☆☆☆5.0· a year ago

Verified

Cryopreservation/Egg freezing review: My care team: Anna Sokalska, MD, Lusine Aghajanova, MD, Clemens M. Ortner, MD RNs: Samantha L, Angelina N, Sandeep B, Emily M Pros: - January 2023: video consultation was great, informative - labs were super fast and can be done in the same location - appointment times were delayed only twice and a max of 15 minutes (which is awesome. I’ve had to wait for 30+ min for other hospitals for other visits) - once I started, I used the MyChart to message my care team for issues/questions/concerns, I always had a response or a call back within 12 hours on business days. I had a sinus infection so I was wondering if any of my antibiotics would interfere with my treatment plan and they sent it over to an MD who confirmed it would not - ample live video sessions, education materials and documentation for injections but alto fertility video is the best resource - offered psychological counseling if we wanted - someone on the care team spoke to me at least once a day via mychart (I also sent many questions) - retrieval day! Nurses and doctors all came and explained the entire process and their role. I was extremely confident and comfortable in their care. Everyone was so warm and caring. The egg freezing process was intimidating but the team made it so positive that I would do it again. - entire surgery is documented in care notes after visit, along with the vitals, anesthesia monitoring and timeline of each event from admit to discharge. Cons: - when my care plan was created, a nurse said someone will call me to over it but no one called me. I sent a message on mychart and someone called me within an hour to review. - Stanford and CVS somehow ordered a ton of extra medication that I now have to discard with no reimbursement. Stanford said CVS should’ve double checked and CVS said they read me all the medication so it’s my fault that I didn’t request it to be removed. They read me 11 prescription items and I had no idea what each of them were and the dosage so I just said yes to everything so please check. Stanford and CVS don’t pay for the medication, we do. So it’s our responsibility to check that they don’t send us too many… I would recommend.

Yasaman Safarpour

☆☆☆☆☆5.0· a year ago

Verified

5 stars because I can't give a 10! The care team at Stanford Fertility Center is simply amazing! From my first consultation to my last appointment, they provided me with top-notch care and support throughout my entire journey. Dr. Sokalska and her team were incredibly knowledgeable, professional, and compassionate. They took the time to explain every step of the process to me and made sure I understood what to expect. They also answered all of my questions and addressed any concerns I had along the way. What impressed me most about their care team at was their personalized approach to my care. They treated me as an individual and tailored my treatment plan to my specific needs. They were always available to offer guidance and support, and I felt like they genuinely cared about my well-being. I cannot express my gratitude enough for the amazing care I received. I would highly recommend them to anyone. They are truly the best in the business!