Infertility is such a personal, and often times painfully long, process and Dr. Douglas did NOT make us feel that we were important. There was zero personal relationship between him and us and that was very evident as the months went on...Of the five IUI procedures, he only performed two of them...He rarely made the decisions when it came to months that we had low follicle counts and the nurses would often tell us, "well, it's up to you" or "it only takes one." We are NOT the professionals and felt we had to make educated guesses. One month, I had ONE mature follicle and we were still told it was up to us, when in hindsight, that is when I wish Dr. Douglas would have been the doctor and had us not go through with the IUI and spend thousands of dollars only to produce one chance. Dr. Douglas is a very robotic and systematic, which as the months went by and unsuccessful treatments increased, was NOT what we needed. We never felt as if we were trying to start a family, it felt as if we were just trying to complete a task.
My wife and I often felt like we were bothering them [nurses at IVF Plano] when we had questions or needed explanations...Several times we were told that our prescriptions would be called in, only to show up to the pharmacy and find out nothing had been sent...Any appointments on the weekends or holidays, would incur a $30 fee...Weaknesses of this clinic are COMMUNICATION, response-time, and very impersonal. We wanted to email something one time and were told that they do not have an email address! Like, what the heck! If we needed anything during non-working hours, we had no way of getting a hold of anyone (nurse, doctor or clinic). As far as strengths, I really can't think of even one. The nurse who took my blood was always very nice.
How was your experience with James Douglas at IVF Plano?
From the start, Dr. Douglas spend minimal time with me and my wife. Of the five IUI procedures, he only performed two of them. TWO! He rarely made the decisions when it came to months that we had low follicle counts and the nurses would often tell us, "well, it's up to you" or "it only takes one." We are NOT the professionals and felt we had to make educated guesses. One month, I had ONE mature follicle and we were still told it was up to us, when in hindsight, that is when I wish Dr. Douglas would have been the doctor and had us not go through with the IUI and spend thousands of dollars only to produce one chance. Dr. Douglas is a very robotic and systematic, which as the months went by and unsuccessful treatments increased, was NOT what we needed. We never felt as if we were trying to start a family, it felt as if we were just trying to complete a task.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of James Douglas at IVF Plano?
Go somewhere else. Infertility is such a personal, and often times painfully long, process and Dr. Douglas did NOT make us feel that we were important. There was zero personal relationship between him and us and that was very evident as the months went on.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with James Douglas at IVF Plano?
There was very little personal communication between doctor and patient. When we wanted to talk to Dr. Douglas, we had to request a meeting and hope to see if he had time. The sonographer and nurse would check stuff with him, but very little effort or time was made to establish a trust relationship between doctor and patient.
Describe the protocols James Douglas used in your cycles at IVF Plano and their degree of success.
The first month we tried clomid, but it thinned my uterine lining, so we had to supplement with estrace. Second and third months we did letrozole. I don't exactly remember the fourth month but in the fifth round, we started injectable (Gonal-F). Rationale moving to injectables was to increase follicle count because previous months had been very low (1-3 follicles, at best). All treatments above were unsuccessful.
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at IVF Plano.
We often dealt with Lana and I don't remember the other nurse. They were more friendly than Dr. Douglas, but not what you need from an infertility office. The nurses (and sonographer) are the ones we dealt with most and they essentially left most decisions to us, which we did NOT like. We are the patients, not the medically trained staff. The month that we did the injectables, the nurse showed us INCORRECTLY how to use them, and when we ended up injecting two months worse of hormones in three days, they blamed it on us. My wife and I often felt like we were bothering them when we had questions or needed explanations.
Describe your experience with IVF Plano.
Weaknesses of this clinic are COMMUNICATION, response-time, and very impersonal. We wanted to email something one time and were told that they do not have an email address! Like, what the heck! If we needed anything during non-working hours, we had no way of getting a hold of anyone (nurse, doctor or clinic).
As far as strengths, I really can't think of even one. The nurse who took my blood was always very nice.
Describe the costs associated with your care under James Douglas at IVF Plano.
I believe IUI visits were around $500, out of pocket (insurance did NOT cover IUI). Sonos, after insurance, were around $100. Any appointments on the weekends or holidays, would incur a $30 fee.
What specific things went wrong at IVF Plano?
- Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at IVF Plano.
Several times we were told that our prescriptions would be called in, only to show up to the pharmacy and find out nothing had been sent. As previous stately, the month we started the injections (Gonal-F), we were told to dial the shot to 300, inject and recap. Which was NOT our treatment plan. It was supposed to be dial to 100, inject and recap and when we called about it (my wife had to call because I was too irate about it) they blamed it on us saying that we hadn't dialed it correct.