If you’re hoping to have a baby using donor eggs, do you know what to look for when choosing a clinic?
Many clinics offer IVF, but having treatment using donor eggs has its own unique challenges for every patient.
So it’s important to choose a clinic that not only has donor eggs available for you, but understands both the physical and psychological aspect of your journey and has the expertise to support you through it.
Here’s advice from our dedicated Donation Team on what you should consider when deciding which clinic to go to for treatment using donor eggs:
Donor Eggs source:Although a clinic promotes treatment using donor eggs, don’t assume the eggs are from UK egg donors. Many clinics don’t have the resources and expertise to create their own egg donor programmes, and so import donor eggs from abroad. All Manchester Fertility egg donors are from our own programme, Manchester Donors, which is one of the most successful in the country. Using a UK egg donor may be important to you for many reasons, including health screening regulations and for your child’s future. All UK egg donors are identifiable to the children they help to create, giving your child the opportunity to find out who their donor is when they reach the age of 18.
Donor Eggs availability:Does the fertility clinic actually have egg donors available, or will you be put on a waiting list? Waiting lists are as long as two years at other fertility clinics in the North West. Manchester Fertility doesn’t have a waiting list for donor eggs, with a choice of both fresh and frozen donor eggs immediately available.
Success Rate transparency:Is the clinic open with you about your personal chances of success using donor eggs? Does the clinic also offer any additional techniques to help you conceive, and explain clearly how they might benefit you? At Manchester Fertility we offer Embryoscope time-lapse development to improve selection of the best embryo, and free Blastocyst transfer and use of EmbryoGlue, which helps the embryo to ‘stick’ to the uterus after transfer.
A ‘whole body’ approach:Does the clinic examine your health to ensure you’re ready for treatment with donor eggs? At Manchester Fertility we don’t just look at your specific fertility problem in isolation. We look at you as a whole - combining fertility treatments with an expert holistic approach to maximise your health, diet and nutrition before your cycle starts, so your body is optimised for treatment using donor eggs. We also offer acupuncture for IVF.
Clear fees & funding:Is the clinic upfront about treatment costs? Do they offer any kind of funding plan? At Manchester Fertility if you don’t have a baby through the Access Fertility Donor Eggs IVF Money-Back Plan, you receive a refund. Open to women aged up to 48, the plan gives you up to three cycles of discounted treatment and 70% of plan fees back if you don’t have a live birth.
Personal support:Does the clinic have an established support network in place for you up to pregnancy and beyond? Using donor eggs to have a baby can be a big emotional decision for everyone involved. Our dedicated Donation Team and counsellors give you specialist support throughout your entire treatment journey, with our own fertility midwife guiding you through the crucial early stages of your pregnancy, ensuring a smooth transition to NHS maternity care.
Donor eggs expertise:Is the clinic team experienced in using donor eggs? Treatment using donor eggs needs very careful and precise treatment planning, especially if using fresh donor eggs, to ensure everything happens at exactly the right time in your treatment cycle.
Egg donor care:If a clinic does have its own egg donor programme, pay close attention to how it treats its egg donors. We’re passionate about egg donor care and believe all egg donors should be treated with dignity and respect for the valued gift they are giving. But not all clinics do this. Manchester Fertility is the only clinic in the North West to be awarded Centre of Excellence status by the National Gamete Donation Trust (NGDT).
Explore why Manchester Fertility is a leading clinic in the UK for treatment using donor eggs. Speak to our friendly Donation Team on 0161 300 2737 to discuss starting your treatment with donor eggs, and our available UK egg donors.
Last updated: 20th January 2020
