How was your experience with Anna Chan Nackley at CARE Fertility?
I like that Nackley understood our time constraints and was able to get us tested for numerous things while we were there. She has a plan of action in mind as soon as you visit her. However, we ended up proceeding with IUI as she recommended. It was unsuccessful, and we did not see our RE during the whole process. It felt like the procedure wasn't regarded in a high manner because it wasn't as costly as IVF. The nurses made a mistake during our IUI, and did not offer to combine 2 samples as my husband's count was lower than normal. At this clinic, protocol is to offer this. They did not offer this to us, and did not even tell us my husbands counts until right before I was inseminated. They were supposed to do both those things before our IUI. When we were finally able to get ahold of Nackley, she did listen to our concerns. She promised to get us in contact with the Dr. Doody (owner of clinic) so that we could find resolution and hopefully get a refund or another IUI for free. She also promised that she would look into clinical trials for IVF for us. She DID NOT follow through with either of these promises. I called the clinic MULTIPLE times. She knows we are leaving this state soon, so I believe they are avoiding us until we move.
In addition, she refused to test my progesterone as she doesn’t believe it really will show anything until your pregnant. She also refused to test for the MTHFR and a thyroid panel. Both are things I would have like to be tested for. I had to go elsewhere to get my progesterone tested and receive progesterone to take after ovulation.
I felt like the doctor rushed us into having our only options be IUI or IVF. She would not give us the option of doing medicated cycles before jumping into these procedures. With our history of conceiving, it didn’t feel right and I couldn’t help but wonder if she was doing this for our best interest, or if there were different motives.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Anna Chan Nackley at CARE Fertility?
I would not recommend doing IVF or IUI here. With the amount of mistakes made during our IUI, I wouldn't trust them with IVF.
Trust your gut, ask questions and be afraid to advocate for yourself.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Anna Chan Nackley at CARE Fertility?
The facility feels like a business. You are rushed in and out, and it operates like a well oiled machine. I’m not sure if it’s due to my RE, but rather the facility and how they run it. During some visits it’s obvious to see that the RE is very busy and doesn’t really have time for your questions, which was very important to me. I have had appointments on other days where it’s not like this, but you never know what you’ll get. In addition, we experienced an issue at this clinic where they didn't follow procedure. It has not been resolved, and made it very difficult to speak with our RE.
Describe the protocols Anna Chan Nackley used in your cycles at CARE Fertility and their degree of success.
IUI with 50mg of clomid, 4 dominant follicles, ultrasounds for monitoring cycle day 3, 9, 12, and 16 (confirming ovulation). Day 16 we had our insemination. Anna Nackley was not around for any of the IUI procedures.
Multiple blood tests for: clotting disorders, AMH, insulin/diabetes, karyotype (both), thyroid (TSH), hormones (husband)
Everything came back normal except for a blood clotting issue, referred to hematologists.
Semen Analysis (husband): Count was low, not real treatments except for the option of IUI/IVF
HSG and Hysteroscopy-to see if uterus was normal, it was
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at CARE Fertility.
They get the job done, but seem overwhelmed. Some nurses are very kind and caring. Others are very short and do not have time for your questions/or make you feel silly for asking questions.
When we had our IUI, the nurses were the ones that made the mistake with the IUI/didn't follow protocol. The nurse who made this mistake was very kind and was apologetic. However, she had no power to do anything to bring resolution.
Describe your experience with CARE Fertility.
If something goes wrong with your procedure, don't expect the clinic to try and resolve the issue. They will push you along, since they don't need your business. To them, you are simply a number. I had experience talking to the office manager, the clinic manager, and a few other people within the clinic. They did not offer resolution to the problem, and were not very compassionate or caring.
They are able to get you in quick. They know how to get this done efficiently. It feels like a business, and I don’t really like how they have other people come in to tell you how much your next treatments may cost. It felt a little overwhelming and I still felt unsure of what I really needed to have done, and was reluctant to agree.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Anna Chan Nackley at CARE Fertility.
We were covered for most of the testing by insurance. We had to pay 200 out of pocket for an additional test.
We paid 1,000 for our IUI (that is because we also paid for the trigger shot and clomid).
For everything additional, it’ll be out of pocket. 1,000 for IUI.
Describe Anna Chan Nackley's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at CARE Fertility.
Not sure what they do for that. I'm pretty sure they only transfer one embryo at a time if you're under 35.
What specific things went wrong at CARE Fertility?
- Failed to call with results
- Failed to order appropriate test
- Failed to inform you of changes in protocol
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
- Lost or damaged samples
Describe the specific things that went wrong at CARE Fertility.
Our insurance does not cover fertility treatments, and we pay out of pocket for these expensive treatments. We decided to proceed with IUI. This procedure failed, and I did not end up pregnant. After finding this out, I called to see what our next steps were to begin our family. When talking to a few medical people from CARE on the phone, I discovered CARE did not follow protocol when administering the IUI. Here's what went wrong (they have admitted to their mistakes, with no resolution):
1. When my husband brought his sperm sample to the person who processes it, they did not tell him the amount of sperm in that collection. Instead, they asked him to verify if it belonged to him. We found out my husbands count right before I was getting inseminated. The count was very low, and we were surprised as this was the first we had heard of this. Later, after the procedure (during my phone call) I found out that we were supposed to be notified of his sperm count a few minutes after he had delivered his sample, hours before our insemination.
2. We found out that when counts are below 2 million, it is protocol for CARE to offer a second sample and combine the sample, making a larger sample. They did not offer this, and we feel this could have made a difference. In the very least, we should have had every single option for success. That was not given to us.
They also forgot to call and tell me about one of my blood test results before the appointment, but it wasn’t a huge deal.