Kaiser Permanente NorCal

Strengths [of Kaiser Permanente] Great empathic doctors that took time to explain and answer questions thoroughly Very clear instructions Always felt safe and cared for during the procedures Weaknesses A lot of different people on staff, communication between staff could be better so that the nurses aren't saying different things to me.

We get seen by the doctor fairly quickly and the clinic [Kaiser Permanente] is clean. However, the staff and Dr. Grosskinsky are cruel and unkind. ... There were a few nurses who were very caring and the rest seemed entertained by Dr. Grosskinsky’s terrible behavior. Many times I would see the nurses who were assigned to be in the room with Dr. Grosskinsky and I laughing at his remarks on failed treatment.

Kaiser is such a big operation that sometimes there are communication issues between all the different departments. The upside to that is have a care "team," who all bring something different to the experience. ... IVF through Kaiser will cost about $25,000. ... The medications cost the most, about $600 when doing all menopur shots. The IUI cost about $400 each. ... I started with the least aggressive approach

For me it [Kaiser Permanente-Fremont] is very convienent , all of the labs, radiology etc are located close to each other and since it is all Kaiser the billing is also very centralized. This office is very busy, not that I see a lot of patients when I go, but after referral my initial consult was scheduled over a month later. We booked IVF and were scheduled for 4.5 months later. In review: I really love the convience of everything being connected, love the doctors and staff, but it was a very long wait to do every step because they are so booked.

It was efficient, but busy! They recommended I get there early and as long as I did the wait wasn’t bad at all.... They [Kaiser Permanente NorCal] were also very responsive to any questions or immediate needs. Weaknesses: the clinic is very busy which makes appointments feel rushed at times. Wait times can be quite long.... They [nurses] were always compassionate and helpful. No negative experiences at all.

The clinic, being Kaiser, has its limitations including the level of patient education you receive, the inflexibility around being on the pill in preparation for the scheduled cycles, and the feeling that I was being "shuffled through." I once received an email from a nurse addressing me by someone else's name..... Our doctor and the head embryologist explained what happened very thoroughly and patiently. We were offered a sympathetic "these things happen" but they did not claim responsibility nor did they offer a free cycle.

Very clean. Typical Kaiser office (seen at the Sunnyvale clinic, but transfer done in Fremont). Parking good at both. Chose because of location and proximity to my office. Front desk staff very helpful and remembered my name. ... All [nursing staff] very communicative, but busy office so sometimes wouldn’t hear back until the end of the day.

The front office staff [Kaiser NorCal] is amazing. The team is professional and patient. They swiftly get me checked in and ready for my appointment. Some patients attended the appointment with their baby and the staff would naturally congratulate them, but it stung a little bit. It felt inconsiderate for the staff to celebrate a baby in the wait room around patients who are there because we cannot get pregnant. Maybe the can have blank cards at hand saying: congratulations! Instead of talking about the baby’s arrival in front of patients.

Staff [at Kaiser - Fremont] forgot to give me paperwork required for intake. I faxed and emailed them multiple times but the documents were never received. Staff never told me the timing of my HCG trigger injection and never did an injection training with me. They also failed to call my letrozole prescription in to the pharmacy. Staff told me that for my IUI procedure I could bring my sperm (from a bank) with me at the time of my appointment. I asked multiple times and they all confirmed this was true. I got a call four hours prior to my IUI from the clinic demanding that I drive to their office with the sperm immediately because they apparently want to have it prior to the appointment. I had to abruptly leave work and wait at UPS until it arrived, since Kaiser won't accept sperm bank shipments at their offices. This adds to the cost and stress. When I expressed that I was upset with the last minute stress despite asking multiple times in advance to avoid this situation, staff and Dr. Shen shrugged and said that this always happens the first time so now I will know for next time. Also the number of mobile sperm was not shared with me until after the IUI and they were a subpar number. Dr. Shen insisted that Kaiser do the sperm wash rather than purchase pre-washed IUI sperm, and I feel that the lab must have damaged the sample and that this was bad advice. Dr. Shen told me after my IUI that next month when I wanted to come back the procedure will be better - almost as if she expected it to fail, which was extremely disappointing to hear immediately following and IUI. When the IUI was not successful, she only told me that there is a higher chance of it not working so I should not be surprised. She then asked if I wanted to do the same procedure with no changes. When I asked what we could do differently moving forward, she said there is nothing that can be done differently. Needless to say, this was one of my final interactions with this doctor.

Monitoring was done on specific days and in the morning. The lab for blood work was in the next building. We'd do blood work, walk to the clinic, and wait about 20 mins- 1 hour for an ultrasound. Even with an ultrasound appointment. HINT: You can make a lab appointment which they will honor.... Even signing the paperwork and the class on how to do injections was poorly organized and left me feeling unprepared. HINT: I got my medication at the Disco Rex Walgreens in Palo Alto and they gave me a private tutorial on how to do injections. Much better than the nurses at Kaiser.

[At Kaiser-Fremont] I did a single-embryo transfer from a frozen embryo that was retrieved at another clinic. He was unsure of how to predict success given that the embryo came from elsewhere, but the cycle was ultimately successful...They messed up a billing thing. When I contacted the doctor about it, he said he would let their billing person know, and that she would get back to me. That never happened. I still need to deal with the billing issue. Other than this, and what I have already described, everything was good.

Kaiser does not assign you a primary nurse for IUIs or IVF. The IUIs are all done by rotating NPs-- all of whom are competent, kind, and engaging...For IUIs, they don't perform them on Sundays, so they'll do it a little early or late if the ideal time was a Sunday...They also made you pay to reserve your spot... I was surprised that it was the nurse who gave the results; not Dr. Harris...When the nurse called me with my beta, she told me I wasn't pregnant. However, I did have a low positive pregnancy test (17).

All the nurses [at Kaiser - Fremont] are very friendly and nice and truly seem to understand how difficult infertility can be.Everyone was scheduled at a certain time so it could be a long wait, but they were really quick and we got to meet with the actual Dr for each appointment so I did not mind. Plus you could check in and then do your bloodwork while you waited...

The office [Kaiser Fremont] itself is not the best at communicating as you often had to leave messages and get called back and they batch cycle which is frustrating but Dr. shen was amazing and worth the inconvenience for me....You see different nurses each time so I didn't have a point person. The communication system was a bit frustrating because it involved leaving messages and getting called back. The nurses during my procedures were wonderful and they all were very compassionate and helpful.

I liked my doctor [at Kaiser], the couple of other doctors that I've met, and the nursing staff and care coordinators. The biggest weakness is the wait time which has hovered around 6 months for years. Also, the billing folks occasionally have issues (although in my case that tended to be forgetting to charge me for things)...Monitoring appointments are go to the lab across the street when it opens, then come in for monitoring. If you don't want to wait, you have to be early (7am). Not my favorite method, but I get that it is designed for people who have to get to work.

They [Kaiser Permanente] did not let me know about possible issues with my tubes until after we had done numerous cycles and spent months trying. ... You are treated as a number not as a person. Appointments are not flexible and rarely convenient for patients. After going to the clinic for three years some of the staff still didn’t recognize me. They put you on a schedule that fits them instead of working with you.

I felt that the nursing staff [at Kaiser - Fremont] was great and very supportive. They were always friendly and compassionate...The clinic is in a nice building and was clean and comfortable... [Re: monitoring appointments] I didn't love this aspect but in the end it worked fine. There was just one day that I got there a bit later and I had to wait almost two hours...When going to this clinic, see it as a whole team.

I feel that the clinic [Kaiser Permanente Fremont] was a nice clinic with a great seating area in the waiting room to help you feel comfortable.... The nursing staff was great and communicated well with me.... My experience had some great times but also some frustrating and sad moments. There were times when looking over test results or images when I was told over and over again what a unique case I had and I wish I could give you more information. Dr. Proctor was willing to explore different tests and procedures and was honest with the fact that they may not give us any new answers.

Staff [Kaiser Permanente] is very nice. Wait times can be long. But once you are seen they do not rush and take their time. ... They were clear in my consult going over what my coverage was and how much I would pay for each service ... And all Instructions were clear. Also received printed instructions. And out of state pharmacies were used To get me the best prices. ... Nursing staff was quick to respond to phone messages. And quick at scheduling appointments when needed

They [Kaiser] missed an ectopic pregnancy that they thought was a miscarriage and I ended up having to have the tube removed. ... They are very busy and you don’t see the same dr all the way through. It gets frustrating and doesn’t feel consistent. After over three years of doing treatment there some dr. Still didn’t recognize me ... We started with clinic and after a failed iui resulting in a missed ectopic we went on the injectables

This clinic [Kaiser Permanente] provides many appointment options and conducts everything in a timely manner. They treated us with respect and care. They also respected our confidentiality while also being caring and supportive. The first come, first serve option for morning appointments was really nice because I would get there early and be seen by the doctor faster.... We always felt cared for and our emails/phone calls were always returned with a detailed reply.

I have nothing but excellent things to say about Dr. Proctor and the nurses at Kaiser Fremont. Everyone was honest, compassionate, and incredibly helpful....Dr. Proctor said to me, “What would be worse—not getting pregnant with this cycle of IVF or getting pregnant with twins.” I decided that I needed to get pregnant that cycle, I chose to transfer 2 embryos, and I got pregnant with twins.

Both cycles were high dose antagonist protocols. One detriment of Kaiser is that you work with their cycle, not yours...The wait is insane. I have heard that billing can be funky for non-Kaiser patients. (Yes, you absolutely can go here and not be a Kaiser patient....One nurse could be negative, but overall they were very informed. Whenever I called or emailed with a question, they answered promptly. When I received my medical records from them, they logged every email or call.

$13,200 for IVF with ICSI. Medications about $3,000 additional...Kaiser is big business, so they have a ton of resources and people and information. I liked this approach after being turned away from a small, boutique RE office...Dr. Proctor is personable and kind, but not overly so...Dr. Proctor listened. He was our second RE and let us tell our full story from start to finish. We are a very severe male factor infertility couple, so Dr. Proctor relied heavily on another male specialist to give the "ok." Once that was cleared up, we moved right ahead. Dr. Proctor was responsive, clear and exhibited no judgment or personal bias in any way.

[Kaiser Permanente NorCal is a] Very busy clinic but well organized and clean. I was initially scheduled for my consultation with another doctor but was told last minute that it was actually Dr. Proctor. It worked out at the end with him being the doctor but I was given no warning about the switch...I saw many nurses. They were all friendly but i never really got to know them. They were helpful on the phone if I called with a question.