How was your experience with Matan Yemini at Diamond Institute for Infertility?
I liked that he came off as very frank/ matter-of-fact. He spoke of statistics and dealt with my husband well. Even though I wasn't in contact with him through my care he did call me after he heard of my miscarriage and said we could go back to his practice when our "hearts are ready".
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Matan Yemini at Diamond Institute for Infertility?
Ask him if he will be in town for the duration of your care.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Matan Yemini at Diamond Institute for Infertility?
I felt like a number because we weren't given any options within IUI. We were told that we had to take clomid, the trigger shot, and do IUI. In talking to a friend who had been through it, I found out that we had an option to not use drugs or insemination, but to just be monitored. When I called to ask Doctor Yemini about this he tried to talk us out of it, the gist I got was that a cycle without drugs was pointless. I had 2 cycles with the institute and only saw him for the consultation and one other office visit. I found out through their facebook page that he was at his practice in Bremuda during my care which is why I saw other doctors.
Describe the protocols Matan Yemini used in your cycles at Diamond Institute for Infertility and their degree of success.
For our first cycle with Dr. Yemini we, the couple, decided to do what they call a "natural" cycle where I took no drugs and they monitored the maturity of the follicle and it's impending release. We had "timed intercourse" and basically waited to get a period, which I did.
The second cycle we decided to go whole-hog. They put us on Clomid and we did a trigger shot at home before having sex one day and IUI the next. They had me get an rx for progesterone suppositories, it felt really last-minute and was very expensive. The prescription was for a small amount, presumably because they wanted to monitor me before having me purchase more, but I wasn't told that, if all went well, that I would have to take it 2x day up until my 12th week.
Around the 6th week they told me my beta/hcg was not rising appropriately, that I would have a miscarriage soon, to get off the progesterone, that if the hcg increased "inappropriately" they would have me schedule a DNC. We began mourning. The following week my hcg doubled and they had me come in for a sonogram where I saw the baby and its heartbeat. A female doctor (not Yemini) called me to apologize and say they could have been wrong, that we could be cautiously optimistic. They did not want me to go back on progesterone. Subsequent sonograms went well, we were discharged at 11 weeks, lost the baby at 12 weeks. D+C at 13 weeks.
Describe your experience with your nurse at Diamond Institute for Infertility. (Assigned nurse: Janet and Stephanie)
Janet is also a no-BS kind of lady, which can be great. She is pretty direct. Stephanie was more soft-spoken and took the time to describe things/ next steps patiently. I had two very different experiences with them, but it wasn't always clear who I would talk to. The nurse who did the venipuncture was never scrubbed up, she wore unprofessional clothes, jewelry, and make up and would often feel for a vein with her un-gloved hand AFTER swabbing with alcohol. I had to ask her on three occasions to use a glove.
Describe your experience with Diamond Institute for Infertility.
I had some issues with my insurance processing the claims and had a very hard time getting in touch with the only person at the clinic who could tell me what to do. She would ask for emails with specific information and would only every reply that she would check on the status of my [fill in the blank] and rarely got back to me when I asked for updates.
The clinic furthest south in NJ had leaks in the ceiling of the waiting room (there was a trash can for catching water in between waiting room chairs).
The clinic in NY seems to be based out of another practice as a satellite of Diamond and basically "telecommutes" by phone to the NJ office. They didn't have access to my bills except for the total due, they would have to call another office to answer my billing questions, to charge my card, and after monitoring hours the place basically shuts down and you have to call the other clinics. They also blasted the same country pop songs every morning (6am-8am) because they said they weren't allowed to change the station and wouldn't let us sit in quiet instead.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Matan Yemini at Diamond Institute for Infertility.
We were told that a cycle would cost us about $1,500 plus drugs (drugs were $200-$300)
Billed to insurance as follows:
consultation:$280
office visit $60/$75/$189
semen analysis $342
hsg $650
Insemination $985
venipuncture $26 (3x week)
Labs (mixed btwn sent out and in-house)
monitoring labs $163-$210 per visit
ultrasound $252
What specific things went wrong at Diamond Institute for Infertility?
- Failed to call with results
Describe the specific things that went wrong at Diamond Institute for Infertility.
There were a number of times they didn't call me with results and I had to call in. I was told regularly that if I didn't hear from them by 4pm that I should call in and I did that on several occasions.