UPMC Magee

Strengths would be how through they are and how they explain the journey you will go on. A weakness would be how long it actually takes to get an appointment (months). But it was so worth the wait. They make you feel so comfortable in very uncomfortable situations.

The entire staff was very kind and considerate of my feelings. Speaking with Dr.Menke was like sitting down talking to a friend. I wasn’t just another number.

Very compassionate and kind. They know you are going through something so hard and are mindful of that.

From our very first visit she was very down to earth. It was like sitting there talking to a friend. She was very warm and answered all of our questions. We told her to be as blunt and up front as she can and she did exactly that. She throughly explained the testing process for me, she even came in unexpectedly when one of the tests they were doing were not going well with two of the other PA’s. She made sure I was ok and asked if I was ok to get home/back to work. She’s very considerate and very through and she makes sure you understand the process before leaving her office.

Go with an open mind and heart. She can either beat around the bush and be soft but we asked her to be brutally honest and she was- as an RE should be in my opinion.

I used clomid 100mg from cycle days 3-7. Ovulation kits starting day 9. They had me come in for an ultrasound on day 12 to see how my follicles were. If I had a surge when I tested on day 12 or before I was to come in for bloodwork. Unfortunately I didn’t have a surge the first 2 times so they did Ovidrel on day 12 or 13 and did the IUI 48 hours after that and used progesterone 100mg suppositories until my next period. My 3rd IUI they waited until cycle day 17 ( I surged later in my cycle than most women) but I still had a negative pregnancy test.

Each cycle was about 1,300. A visit with her was only 40.00 (my copay) And my preliminary testing was not covered by my insurance, which I had to pay my deductible (1,200)

Strength- small flexibility with scheduling. Weakness- answering services. When calling to schedule and appointment you never get ahold of a human. You get a voicemail for the nurse line. They do call you back in a timely manner. However, you have to leave a detailed message (which isn't easy to call and say "I'm calling because I got my period and this round of IUI didn't work so I need to do this all over again". When they call you back, you have to restate everything you just said on the voicemail in more detail. IUI failures are hard enough to talk about, much less have to leave a voicemail about them.

There were times I felt treated like a number and times I felt treated like a human. When being taken back for the IUI, the nurses would ask (all four times I did IUI), "this is your first IUI, right?". Talk about rubbing salt in a wound. The staff for the most part was amazing with the exception of being asked questions that should be avoided when they have access to your medical charts.

The nursing staff asked me each time I went in for an IUI if this was my first IUI. I never understood why they asked that. There was a moment of awkward silence and then a no from me. Questions like that really rub salt in the wound, certainly they could check medical charts before asking questions like at about such a sensitive subject. The nursing staff however was always compassionate and caring.

Dr. Marie Menke was caring and compassionate. She was also professional, she offered hope but didn't offer false hope. She always remained professional. Dr. Menke was easy to talk to and have difficult conversations with.

I would advise them to go in with an open mind. Dr. Menke doesn't sugar coat odds, however she does give you hope.

I had various blood work and ultrasounds, including a sonohystergram in January 2018. All bloodwork and US's came back normal, providing no answers to why we are not able to conceive on our own. We decided to move forward with IUI/Clomid cycles. After each IUI I also used vaginal progesterone. During my second round of IUI I got severe headaches from the Clomid, the headaches were solid all day for over a month. For the third and fourth cycles I was switched to letrozole. After 4 failed IUI cycles, we re-evaluated and decided to move forward with IVF. After deciding to move forward with IVF we switched Dr's.

My insurance covered office appointments and some testing/diagnostics. It did not cover the IUI rounds themselves, which were $485 each.

Although we discussed moving forward with IVF with Dr. Menke, we did not discuss in details the IVF procedure.

The nurses are wonderful, the office is always busy and has difficult hours for anyone that works full time. If doing IVF you will have to go to Pittsburgh for it. The nurses answer all questions the day or day after you call and leave a message. They have a rep that works on the insurance aspect, but you can't always trust their answers.

The nursing staff was thorough whenever the face to face visits were being completed. However, we had decided not to do IVF at the time in November. My husband was awaiting a semen analysis after having his Hep C cured. We received the results via online portal. The Doctor's office never called. I called them to ask if it would be possible to do another IUI. I feel that they should have been checking the results and calling with further information. Also, I was told in Jan 2017 that IVF would be covered with my insurance. I didn't change insurance or jobs, and then in Nov 2017, the office rep in charge of insurance stated that it was not covered.

Since I was there over many months/years I had multiple different nurses. The first one I had was the best, but she was not there when I went back in November. They always call back same day or next morning with any questions comments or concerns. They are the best part of the office.

He was able to explain items in common terms, however did not appear to always state all the steps to the process. Twice he approved for nurses to order drugs for the next step prior to testing being complete, this resulted in me paying over 1,000 in drugs that I can't use.

Make sure you know your nurses name. They are the most important.

He discontinued my metformin after having a blood sugar test, and stated I did not need it. He uses letrazole for ovulation for PCOS, as he stated that Clomid does not work well with PCOS. They have changed to a different drug for IVF, so they can control when you have your period, as they only have embryologists on certain weeks in Pittsburgh/Magee now. They used to use Ganirelex. He uses pregnyl, follistim, progesterone oil/injections for IVF.

My IUI was covered with insurance. IVF would cost 12,000 for a single cycle with ICSI.

He prefers single embryo transfer for decreased risk of miscarriage.

All scheduling is done through a outside central scheduling center. There is not a phone number to get a hold of someone directly in the office unless you call the nurse line but then you must leave a message and wait for a return call. The front desk staff is unapproachable. Very short while speaking with you and rude. Staff in back, nurses and medical assistants, are wonderful.

I feel that Dr. Menke took her time while explaining with my husband and I what her plan was. She answered every question we had in detail and then some.

The nursing staff was great. Very friendly.

Dr. Menke has a very pleasant bedside manner. She was very open with what her expectations were. She listened to our questions and answered appropriately. The only negative thing I can say is she was not very open when I suggested other options. I questioned possibly adding a new medication to the regime multiple times after researching success with other patients in our situation. She quickly shut it down and told us it wouldn't work.

Stand your ground. You need to sometimes be your own advocate.

I have tried Clomid unsuccessfully for many cycles with a previous doctor. Due to that, Dr. Menke decided that we should try 7.5mg of Letrozole to bring on ovulation. After roughly 4 cycles she suggested adding an Ovidrel trigger shot along with the 7.5mg of Letrozole. That cycle, I ovulated on my own without the trigger shot resulting in negative pregnancy test. We have unsuccessfully done two more cycles with 7.5mg of Letrozole alone. Dr. Menke suggests going to IUI next. I asked her to add Metformin to the regime, she refused. She stated that my levels were fine. When explaining the research I had found showing the success with women who have PCOS, she said that my case was different than those women.

Charged roughly $500 per ultrasound in a treatment cycle. Cost of Ovidrel through special pharmacy was approximately $100 without insurance.

They are very quick about getting an appointment and the wait is not long at all. If you don't want to get blood work at the hospital they will send your paperwork to a Quest if it is closer to make it easier on you if the drive is long. The results from the blood work are very quick and they call you the same day. Also when you call to take to a nurse they get back to you very quickly.

She takes her time and listens. She is very nice and understands what you are going through.

The nursing staff were all very caring and supportive. With my IUI my bladder was not full enough and they didn't give up trying with the procedure. They couldn't get the cathador in place and went and did an ultrasound to make sure everything was okay. They gave me water to full up my bladder and then had sucess with the cathador. They were very encouraging and made me feel comformatable about the whole procedure!

When I first saw the doctor she was willing to move forward. She was not giving me a run around and was willing to help. I was ready to move forward and she was with me the whole time. She explained the process were going to try with the IUI and what to expect each time. She is very easy to talk to and I don't feel rushed during my appointments. I'm hoping the second IUI will be a success!

If you are ready to move forward so is she! She is willing to help you get to where you want to be!

My treatment was insemination with my husbands semin. To inject the semin with a cathador to help the sperm arrive close to an egg. I was told to take a pregnancy test the first day of my period to make sure I was not pregnant. They would call in Clomid and take for five days. I was told to have intercourse every other day starting day 9 of my cycle. I was told to use the ovulation predictor kits day 11 and when a positve ovulation test appeared I would have an IUI the next day. After my IUI they had me use Prometrium after until 15 days past insemination. Day 15 check pregnancy and report results to the nurse. If negative stop Prometrium and your cycle should start within a few days and start the procedure all over again. She was clear as to what each medication was for and why I need to take it.

My copays to meet with Doctor Menke were $50. It didn't matter if I was there for 5 minutes or an hour. I feel she could have emailed the information one time for a five minute conversation. My blood work I never had a copayment but received bills in the mail. My IUI is covered under insurance but was billed later for I believe $247.00 but it may be all the payments for bloodwork that they didn't know for my insurance.

Strengths - long history of treating patients in our area, experience with difficult cases, clean, convenient hours for scans and bloodwork. Weaknesses- after initial appt with doctors, you only see and speak to them for retrieval and transfer. The nursing staff could be a little more compassionate considering where they are working. For out of pocket (we were completely out of pocket), the estimates should be more realistic. We stimmed for a long period of time and spent $15,000 on the medication alone, this was completely underestimated during our earlier appts with finance team, and finally, this clinic doesn’t have adjusted guidelines for patients that have only one ovary. You have to hit a set number of follicles and E2 level or they won’t continue. This can be difficult for patients with DOR or in my case, one ovary.

For the first part of the treatments (consultation, work-ups), he was very kind and listened to everything we had concerns with. Once in treatment, we were only able to speak with the nurses which made us feel more like a number, and very stressful.

During the treatment this was the most stressful part. I was never able to speak to dr. Wakim if I had any questions. I was on cancellation notice for the first 7 days due to poor initial response (before it was increased). The nurses were generally cold and straight down to business. There was no flexibility in assisting with medication needs short notice, no compassion for a bad bloodwork, or scan. No suggestions on ways to help my body respond (ended up doing acupuncture to help E2 levels). The phlebotomist team though was AMAZING!

Dr. Wakim has years of experience helping women in our area with becoming pregnant. He is hands down the best for difficult cases as mine was (1 tube, 1 ovary, only tube blocked, diminished ovarian reserve). He was thoughtful during consultation and no nonsense during the procedures.

Ask all your questions when you are with him. You speak to the nurses for the rest of the treatment (other than during retrieval and transfer). He is blunt, tells you exactly what is going on, but not harshly. I actually prefer this.

Antagonist protocol. We were “going to squeeze out all the eggs we could” as he said. I was on an average dose of Gonal-f, and menopur. I was not on birth control prior as this doesn’t help a sleepy ovary (my ovary was in temporary POF due to a traumatic ovarian rupture from an ovarian ectopic). The dosage was adjusted after no major change in Estrogen level after 5 days. I was maxed out on both and continued to stimulate for another 10 days. We added the holding drug in at day 10. He was successful in getting my ovary to respond with this protocol. The goal was to take an aggressive approach and it worked. We had 8 eggs retrieved (again, only one ovary so this was great for us), 6 fertilized, 4 made it to day 3. Our clinic has a requirement on number of embryos to do a day 5. So we did a 3 day transfer of 2, then held our breath for our other 2. We ended up being able to freeze the remaining 2!!

They offered early morning monitoring appts which while early, worked wonderfully for anyone working long hours.

Procedure - $11000 (retrieval, transfer, scans, etc) Medications - $15000 Storage - $750

Due to my age at transfer (33), they recommended one but left it up to us. He made sure to explain why they recommend one at my age.

The nursing staff is great. Dr. Collins is a really intelligent guy who definitely knows what he's doing. My notes of caution would be that you do need to be prepared to ask anything if you're not sure and that because they work with the MaGee clinic in Pittsburgh, the hours can be kind of crappy, especially around the holidays. I was bumped back a whole month because they basically only work the first half of December (obviously not dr collins fault but it definitely sucked)

Dr. Collins sat down with us for as long as we wanted each time. He was genuinely (or at least seemed genuinely) happy when I got pregnant and made sure we knew each and every step. I was pretty distressed coming into his clinic fresh off a miscarriage from my old doctor and he made sure to tell me what he thought my old doctor had missed and he was right because I was able to get pregnant

The nurses in the office were sweet and attentive and I always felt like they were just waiting for me to get there to help me out (I understand that's not the case but I was the first appointment of the day, usually, so it always felt like the whole thing was for me). They answered all my questions, let me cry when I needed to cry, and celebrated when we needed to celebrate

Dr. Collins was able to pin point what went wrong with my previous doctor. My previous doctor had not mentioned that I could have PCOS and based on my egg retrieval numbers (done with previous dr) he said there was no way I don't have it and was able to adjust the plan he originally thought we'd do to compensate for that. He's a very smart guy and maybe not the most personable (kind of quiet) but I don't care as long as you get the job done

Make sure you ask him anything you're thinking. He might not always answer your concerns outright, but if you ask him about it he definitely already has considered it (at least in his head) and can give you a good answer/plan.

I did a FET. He kept me on birth control for 2 months then we moved to gentle stimulation with estradiol. He used PIO for my progesterone as he didn't want to risk it with crinone or endometrin (not being as effective).

The transfer itself was ~$4000. Ultrasounds & Appointments came in around $1000. Medication was ~$6000

My last cycle before Dr Collins was a fresh, single embryo. I (probably/definitely) had OHSS but my previous dr had implanted anyway (at my request since it was my last day living in that state/being on that insurance). I miscarried. Dr. Collins allowed me to do 2 embryos and we were able to get one live birth

As a patient I have been extremely happy with everything about this facility, not only did he find my precancer but treated it and I'm now on my way to fertility treatments.

The entire staff tgere is so caring, and explains everything in great detail.

The nurses are always going above and beyond for us. When I call with questions they always have the reassuring answer for us.

He goes though everything and explains everything that needs to be done, hes never in a rush to get to the next patient and always makes dure we understand evevything. But its not just Dr. Sanfilipo but his entire staff that works together, if we have questions we cab call anytime and get an answer that same day, and we always have lots of questions. If tests need to be completed they always have room for us. The entire staff if so caring and we definitely aren't just a number in the patient world, we are there to help make our dream come true of having a baby and he is there to do everything in his power to make it happen. When we started this process i was diganosed with endometrial hyperplasia with atypia. So I had to go see the oncologist before we could move on with my fertility treatment. After treatment for my precancer and lots of biopsies I got the ok to go back to the fertility treatments but only have 6 months to try. This would be an absolute dream for us to get this grant and make our dreams come true.

Ask questions, they are there to give you the answers your looking for.

We recieved a paper with all the costs the day we went in for our fertility treatment, everything was very clear, yet, very expensive.

The clinic is very good and because it is in Pittsburgh with so many resources, they have good results. I would recommend to advocate for yourself and no what you want to do and to not wait a long time before trying other options.

She spoke to me personally and my case specifically versus talking about "cases like mine.". She understood and respected I was in the healthcare field and needed to understand everything.

They were so kind and considerate compassionate and helped explain things that I didn't understand. They also respected that I was in the medical field and wanted to understand everything detail.

She was very helpful and understanding and compassionate. She respected my medical knowledge and my needing to understand things. She respected my worries and hesitations. Even though I did not get the results I wanted with those 2 IUI procedures, I would recommend her. We just moved back to State College, PA and that is why I'm not still seeing her.

Advocate for yourself and trust her.

We used IUI without injectables at this point because I am ovulating on my own and she didn't want me to hyperstimulate. My husband's count is good so she wasn't worried about that. My ovarian reserve is low so that is why we are starting these treatments early rather than trying oral medication and intercourse for longer.

It was expensive but manageable because I had good insurance as well as the amount t that UPMC will put towards your infertility care if you have it done at a UPMC hospital. It helped that I worked at the hospital where I was having treatment.

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We've been going to this Clinic for the last 4 years. Everybody there is amazing, there is relatively minimal turn around so there's a lot of continuity of care. The nurses and staff really get to know you and make what can sometimes feel like a terrible situation, actually be a pleasant one

She was open and honest with us. It was obvious she cared but didn't want us to be lead down a path that wouldn't work.

I cannot say enough wonderful things about the nursing staff at this Clinic. They're wonderful nurses who care about their patients and want the best for them.

She was wonderful. She laid out a clear plan and adjusted when necessary. She was very honest with us during each step of the process and gave us the ability to make decisions based on all information available, not just her recommendations.

She's wonderful and even though you might not see her every time, she knows exactly what is going on and is always happy to give you a call and talk about it

Our first cycle together was planned by another doctor, so she followed through with the previously designed protocol. However our second cycle we did an long cycle with Lupron priming followed by 4 vials of menopur, two times a day (8 total) for stimulation. For my donor cycle, we did a uterine scratch the month before.

All monitoring appointments were done between when the clinic opened at 6:30 in the morning until 9:30 in the morning. This way doctors could discuss results at noon conference and call the patients with the results and update their plan of care if necessary. I never felt like a cattle call, it never felt rushed. It was great that the appointments were able to be scheduled before working hours so that it did not eat into my work day in any way, shape, or form

All of our procedures were covered by insurance however I did have a $10,000 deductible for medication that was met early on. I think we ended up spending an additional $12,000 on medication between all three cycles out of pocket

All transfers were recommended as one embry. Because I was under 35 and all embryos were excellent quality

strengths: small, easy to get in weakness: unprofessional receptionist, very long wait even when we were the first appointment of the day, billing issues, unorganized

He would never remember our names, what cycle we were on, or any of my medical history. He would often ask, now what cycle is this? never spent more than 5-10 minutes with us

she was good about emailing me back promptly and was friendly.

My 2 friends recommended him and had success with him so I had high hopes. They said he had poor bedside manner but they were pregnant. I felt like just a number and not human. I felt confused and like my questions were not answered. He often would refer me to his nurse to answer my questions and they gave sketchy responses. I feel like he is a very inelegant man and knows what he is doing but needs to tell his patience what that is. I was very confused most of my appointments and often expressed my anxiety and was teary eyed. Never once did he suggest therapy or resources to help me cope. I felt like he was rushing through treatment and I was excited to start but also felt overwhelmed and did not fully understand the process.

If you are an easy fix, you will like him but if you are unexplained and would like to know details of your cycle he is not the doctor for you. He lacks compassion. I remember him saying "sperm count is very low under 2,000 oh well lets hope this works." In my fertility support group, I have heard similar stories

I was never really given a reason why we chose the proceures we did. I just knew we would try three cycles of iui with meds and monitoring and after that move on to IVF. I remember crying and feeling hopeless after the first cycle. I had no idea that fertility drugs were such an emotional roller coaster.

it was very high, double what I am paying now. We constantly told him we were paying entirely out of pocket and feared we couldn't afford to continue. He offered no ways to help and money was upfront

We did not get this far. I left for another doctor

Strengths- they treat a lot of patients with complex diagnoses. They are honest about success rates and available options. They are willing to let you take lead on treatment if you really feel strongly. Weaknesses- communicationing with your doctor directly is very limited. They treat a lot of patients so beyond your care coordinator, most staff may not remember you.

When I would meet with him, he always had a good handle of my diagnosis and never confused me with other patients. He never seemed rushed to leave and move on to his next appointment. He is always willing to listen and answer all of my questions.

My care coordinators were always very accessible and available to answer my questions via email or phone.

He answers all of your questions honestly and without judgement. He is always willing to explain his thought process behind his choice of treatment. He's shown compassion when I've shown signs of pain during a procedure.

Don't be afraid to ask him anything and everything.

I'm 29 with diminished ovarian reserve as a result of multiple surgeries to remove ovarian cysts. We started with IUI since I was still young, but Sanfilippo made it clear he thought IVF would be our best bet. The IUIs failed.I was told to be cautiously optimistic once it was time for IVF. He chose a protocol designed for poor responders, but it didn't work. My cycle was canceled due to low response. Next, I was told that my chances of success with a second IVF were less than 10%, but he understood I was still young so he would be willing to try again if I wanted to. He said it was time to start thinking about donor eggs as the alternative. I ended up deciding to use donor eggs and we are in this process right now.

A single IVF cycle was around $12,000 plus medication. Donor IVF was $16,000 plus medication.

Always running late, rude, not clean, just another number

I rarely saw Dr. Menke and when I did, my appointments always seemed rush and I never got answers on all my questions. Information that I needed for treatment was NEVER communicated, including pricing.

Rude, disingenuous, too busy to be bothered

Dr. Menke was the first fertility doctor I saw during my fertility journey. I didn't have an expectation or even know what to expect, but having been seen by another doctor, at a different clinic I can reflect on my visits as rushed, not thorough. I also felt like just another number, more money in their pocket. I also felt like there was nothing genuine about my interactions with her on what was the beginning of a very difficult journey.

Get to know your patients, take your time with them, have a general interests in their struggles, and help them understand their diagnosis and what will or can happen next. Also provide your patients with accurate cost information

After my first visit and initial blood work, I was put on 50 mg of Clomid for 6 months unmonitored. Keep in my I already ovulate on my own. Then we moved to monitored clomid with IUI. After my first ultrasound, i had too many mature follicules. Therefore the first IUI was canceled and I was proscribed 25 mg of clomid. That dose allowed for an IUI but no pregnancy. I did one more cycle with Dr. Menke of 25 mg of clomid and IUI which resulted in no pregnancy

Nope, of fact she gave me the wrong code sheet to check with our insurance for IUI. I never met with a fianial advisor. This is the beginning of many financial issues

A weakness is that anytime you call in you get the voicemail. And if you're like me and can't take personal calls while you are working it ends up being unending phone tag with the nurses. If you want very specific questions answered be sure to ask otherwise they'll just tell you things "look okay" without giving you actual results/information. The nurses don't always know why you are there on a given day and there seems to be a lot of miscommunication at times. Be prepared to advocate for yourself. It is so very important for you to understand what you are doing and why, and what each visit is for, and what the expectations are for your cycle. You are your own best advocate! You need to take charge of your own care and be sure that you are being provided the best care possible. The strengths would be having Dr. Menke on their staff as she is wonderful.

Dr. Menke was so compassionate and treated me with kindness and understanding. It was obvious that she truly cared about my feelings throughout treatment, as well as my health and getting results. She was always very thorough in explaining things and took the time to answer every question.

In the beginning I had a lot of issues with the nursing staff - scheduling appointments, knowing why I was there, having prescriptions called in, getting specifics of my results. It was very frustrating and if it hadn't been for Dr. Menke I would have switched to a different practice. Things seemed to have improved a lot in the past 4 months though. Everyone there seems in a better mood and they seem to be running a little smoother now.

Dr. Menke did two laparoscopies on me, multiple medicated cycles, IUIs, and eventually IVF. My first IVF cycle was cancelled before we ever made it to retrieval because I only had 3 mature eggs when expectations were for a lot more. She took the time to call and go over all of the details, talk about next steps and what we would do differently. I had been so upset that I really didn't absorb everything and had a lot more questions the next day - she called me back and went over everything again and answered all of my questions. She helped prepare me for the next cycle and was encouraging that we could get much better results with a different protocol, knowing how my body has reacted to medications in the past and with injectables. The new protocol (estrogen priming) worked much better! We made it to retrieval, transfer, and even have 5 embryos that are frozen! I am cautiously expecting right now and Dr. Menke is following that until I can be released from their office. I really feel she went above and beyond my expectations - she seemed to anticipate my needs (emotionally and otherwise) and tailored her treatment to my specific case. I will be glad when I don't *have* to see her anymore but will miss her and the excellent care she provided me!

Don't be afraid to ask questions or to have her explain things to you! She will, and she'll ensure that you understand.

My successful IVF cycle used the estrogen priming protocol. She chose that for me as my previous IVF cycle (and previous medicated cycles) never produced more than 3 follicles. Since my antral follicle count suggested I should get many more she suspected that I may have premature ovarian aging. She didn't want to risk over suppression by using birth control pills or lupron, and so estrogen priming it was. That would allow receptors in the follicles to open up and basically "wake up" my sleepy ovaries so that they'd accept the hormones and actually grow. My follicles grew slower (which was a good thing!) and I required more medication at higher doses, but in the end it was very effective and I ended up with good quality embryos. Out of 11 mature, 9 fertilized, we transferred the best looking one on day 3, and 5 made it to day 5 to freeze. We are cautiously expecting our first child now.

I was fortunate that my insurance covered the cost of all diagnostics and IUIs. Medications were not covered, and everything associated with IVF was out of pocket. They provided a list of what everything would cost up front, some things were optional, so we were aware of what we were getting into with IVF.

I would recommend Magee to anyone in the Pittsburgh area. I've had nothing but wonderful experiences.

Dr Menke was open and honest with us. We were patients of Dr. Nayaks before she moved, and I was very nervous switching, as I had a wonderful experience with Dr. Nayak. Because of our issues, we know our chances of conceiving using my eggs are low, and while Dr. Menke doesn't sugar coat things, she is kind and warm and I really believe that she cares about us as people.

They're wonderful. I was always greeted with a smile, and when I got my daily calls, they let me ask a million questions. I am so grateful for how caring they are, it really makes a difference.

She's warm and welcoming, but doesn't give a false sense of hope, and that is extremely important to me. Coming into something as complex and emotional as IVF, my husband and I wanted to find a doctor who was caring and compassionate but who also was honest and upfront with the realities of our situation. And Dr. Menke is that person. The ONLY downside is that while she is always available via phone or email, she generally only sees scheduled patients one day a week. But even with that, when I was in a cycle, I heard from her regularly and she was at key ultrasounds.

Don't be discouraged if it takes a bit to get an appointment with her, it's worth the wait.

My first cycle was designed by my previous doctor, Dr. Menke followed the protocols that she had laid out, I have diminished ovarian reserve, so they maxed me out on Menapur and Gonal F. My second cycle was designed by Dr. Menke. I was maxed out on Menapure and Gonal F in my first cycle and was only able to get 2 eggs. She suggested an experimental priming protocol. This time, she was hoping to increase my egg count (I was told it wouldn't be a miracle, that maybe we could get from 2 to 3 or 4) and slowly bring me up. She thought that maybe one follicle showed it was dominate and that stopped all others from growing. This second cycle was a long cycle, 10 days after I ovulated, I took estrogen for three days and then added cetrotide for another three days, then when I got my period, I began the stim medication on day two (I took menapur twice a day). My eggs did increase, they were able to get three

Insurance covered all of the procedures, however we maxed out on our drug coverage, so most of the medications during the second cycle were out of pocket.

The clinic is clean and capable of providing adequate care. Our experience there is not a good one. During our IVF, we had 31 eggs retrieved, 20 were mature and only 1 fertilized. The clinic didn't perform ICSI and at the time I had no idea what that was. I didn't fee like they were very aggressive in their approach.

There were so many nurses on staff nobody had any idea who you were even though I was in the clinic all the time. If you wanted to get in contact with a nurse, you had to call the "nurses line" and leave a message and wait for a call back from whichever nurse decided to call. The nurses never knew who you were, so if you don't keep detailed notes on your cycle, medication, ultrasounds, etc., the probability of the nurses knowing where you are in your cycle is slim.

There were a ton of nurses on the nursing staff that made it difficult to ever see the same nurse twice. In my experience, the nursing staff was very unorganized and sometimes wouldn't even look at your chart before they spoke to you.

Dr. Sanfilippo was a great doctor who was unfortunately surrounded a poor support staff. Dr. Sanfilippo made sure to give details about your procedure and had a good bedside manner. We unfortunately had a lot of bad experiences at UPMC, but Dr. Sanfilippo was the only reason we kept going back. If Dr. Sanfilippo was at any other clinic, we wouldn't hesitate to see him again.

Dr. Sanfilippo listens to your concerns and will put you on a path that is specific to your needs. He did listen when we told him that we had been doing fertility treatments for years and just wanted to go straight into IVF without having to do anymore IUIs or medication cycles. He took into account all of our prior history and agreed that our best course of action was IVF. The only negative I have to say about Dr. Sanfilippo is his support staff is not good or organized which made our experience at the facility negative.

Dr. Sanfilippo suggested IVF with menopur and follistem injections. I was monitored with ultrasounds and bloodwork. The support staff (nurses) didn't perform an ultrasound and kept using an old one to determine future protocols. Once I realized what was going on, I brought it to their attention and they immediately got me in for a "fresh" ultrasound to monitor.

My husband and I had a ton of bloodwork done and the cost was really high. The IVF was very expensive, but probably around the same as the national average.

Dr. Sanfilippo was willing to do a multiple embryo transfer, however I only had one embryo to transfer.

The clinic in general runs really well. As long as you are prepared for what can be a long road, the staff can become like a second family to you. After being with this clinic for awhile you get very spoiled in the fact that you get all your blood work on site as well as calls back each day with results. All retrievals and transfers are done in the same office as well which is nice because you work with the same faces that you have become familiar with. The only thing that was frustrating at times is that if you need to call the nurse line for a quick question, you have to leave a message and wait for a call back every time.

It was more with the nurses not being on the same page as Dr. S.. When this would happen I would get conflicting information which then made me feel like my specific case was not being taken into consideration. From this, I felt like I was receiving generic treatment.

Initially, the biggest problem we ran into was that we were not receiving the protocol for what we had discussed with the doctors. After that was addressed we did not run into any problems and each cycle was run extremely well without issue.

Dr. Sanfilippo was extremely thorough in explaining every step of the process for IUI's and IVF. He may have been a little more clinical in how he handled things but he always had our best interest in mind. He would also take into consideration our thoughts or requests during each cycle. When we found that we were receiving conflicting information from the time of our appointments to the time the nurses would call us with protocols my husband and I were ready to change doctors. When Dr. Sanfilippo found out about this he called me directly to address my concerns and we did not have a problem after that.

Going into the appointment, know that he is very detailed in clinical terms.

For the first IVF cycle we went with the lowest dose of medication which resulted in only 1 embryo that made it to freeze. For the second IVF, Dr. Sanfilippo increased the medication which resulted in 6 frozen embryos that made it to freeze. Unfortunately I do not remember the amounts of each medication.

Before insurance each ultrasound was around $500. Medications for an IVF cycle were around $4,000 before insurance. A total IVF cycle with medications, retrieval, transfer is around $14,000 - $15,000 before insurance. Frozen embryo storage is around $500 per year.

The clinic is busy and difficult to schedule with. Plan ahead. They are very used to this process and very organized, which is important since so much fertility care is time sensitive. This can feel impersonal though, which is overwhelming at timees.

The office was very busy, like a revolving door, and I didn't feel personally know. But he listened to all my questions and concerns, and seriously considered my experiences and knowledge about my body.

We loved seeing Alisha! She was supportive, kind and compassionate. She always had a smile and was ready to encourage us on our journey.

Dr Wakim was very thoughtful about the process we were taking (mostly diagnostic). He carefully explained the steps ahead of us and encouraged us that our path was going to lead to success. He also performed a needed procedure and was very calm, clear, and helped to lighten the mood while still quickly performing his tasks.

He isn't always gentle as he communicates results from testing or expected outcomes, but he is very thorough and wishes to see his patients have success. Be patient and know that his experience makes him very good at his job.

Our testing showed perfect fertility for both my husband and I, so his recommendation was IUI and clomid with monitoring. This protocol did eventually work though we ended up at a different clinic for the sake of proximity to our home.

Consult - $180; HSG - $700, fertility blood panel - $900, sperm washing test - $300, ultrasound - $600. (Approx). These prices are before insurance; we ultimately paid about $600 total. IUI - $2200 with monitoring.

By being part of UPMC, I can get access to quality care and advanced technology in a small town. The clinic is comfortable and easy to find. I'm always treated well at this office. I appreciate being able to get appointments first thing in the morning- often before 8am.

Everyone in the clinic has been very nice to me and communicated at all steps of the way.

Always friendly and professional. Prompt in returning phone calls. Gave me a snack when I forgot to eat breakfast before a blood draw. The only nurses that can draw blood without making it sting.

He was always professional and optimistic. The first RE I ever saw at 27 years old mentioned IVF at the very first visit, before running any diagnostic tests. I had met with Dr Collins several times before he even mentioned IVF. I feel as he is determined to figure out what is wrong with me before jumping to conclusions.

Be prepared and ask questions. He is fairly quiet and doesn't necessarily provide all the information upfront, so ask questions if you need clarification.

I don't ovulate regularly, and Clomid doesn't work for me. So we started with 3 cycles of Letrazol and Pregnyl, followed by timed intercourse. After that, 2 cycles of IUI with the same drugs. After taking an extended break, we are trying another ~2 cycles of IUI before moving on to IVF.

My insurance didn't cover any procedures, so I was given a "cash discount." IUI cycles were approx. $1000 each, not including drugs.

Everyone in the office has your best interest in mind. Even though you might not get the results you want as fast as you would like, everyone is rooting for you. Do your research as far as grants, financial assistance. The office will give you information about all your options.

We love all of the nurses in the office. They answer all my questions every time. (Which is ALOT of questions- phone calls, emails)

We completely trust and respect Dr. Collins. We have had some unexpected events happen to us which was out of Dr. Collins hands. We have met with him multiple times to discuss the next steps. At our egg retrieval we found out our 2 vials of donor sperm from Fairfax cryobank had no motility and severe abnormalities. The transfer was cancelled and I am back on birth control starting lupron injections this week. Dr. Collins has walked us though every step.

Everyone is different.

IUI - day 1 period baseline ultrasound and labs. Day 3-7 oral letrozal. Day 11-15 ultrasound/labs. Trigger shot 36 hours prior to IUI IVF - birth control. Baseline ultrasound/labs with period. Day 3 begin stims. Ultrasound day 5 of stims and every few days until ready for retrieval. Menopur mornings. Follistim evenings. Trigger shot 36 hours prior to retrieval

$27,000 all costs including donor sperm. 4 IUIs. IVF and all meds. Surgery laparoscopy/hystoscopy covered by insurance.

Magee is a busy place. New patients should expect to wait because it was always crowded. The clinic itself was nice and the environment was relatively inviting. I would suggest asking to meet with a financial representative before entering into any treatment so that you know what the costs are BEFORE you begin anything.

With the exception of the very first consultation, we were shoved along like cattle. It always felt like we weren’t important - not very personal at all.

Dr. Wakim’s assistant was so fabulous - she showed compassion and understanding. The nursing staff was not very warm, always made you feel like you were bothering them.

He is older and clearly has experience, but experience doesn’t equal showing compassion. After he diagnosed us with unexplained infertility, next steps were never discussed. It was almost like he was saying “your situation isn’t so bad, good luck and just keep trying.” It really felt like we were kicked out with nothing to look forward to and we didn’t know what to do next.

Be persistent. Be a pest. Don’t be afraid to ask TOO MANY questions.

We received full diagnostic testing through Dr. Wakim. He did explain what each test was evaluating. However after everything came back as “normal” and we were diagnosed with unexplained infertility, we were not explained what to do next. It was like we were done.

We had all of the diagnostic tests; no treatment and we paid out of pocket roughly $4,000.00

The clinic is beautiful well layed out and very welcoming. The waiting rooms are comfortable and clean. The check in process is the easiest I’ve ever had. It’s kind of far from our house and they always take that into consideration when setting appts.

The dr and staff was wonderful. They always remembered my name my husbands name the issues we were having. They would call to check up and see how the medications were going and after surgery when we got bad news sent a very sweet card.

They are wonderful and very caring they take time to answer my many questions and never make me feel like a bother.

Dr Colin’s is very knowledgeable and made sure to explain everything. He would ask what we thought about the next options. He is very invested in helping us start a family. When I needed to have surgery and possibly have my tubes removed he listened to my concerns about having them removed and since leaving them in wouldn’t cause any problems he left them in for me.

He is amazing listen to his advice.

After we found out my tubes were blocked he directed us towards ivf and explained everything in amazing detail.

The cost is expensive only because insurance doesn’t cover treatments

He was open to inplanting two embryos bc of our age and eagerness to start our family.

They are Always open and answer messsages quickly. But they are not compassionate and I don’t feel like they are thorough and I don’t feel like they like hard cases. You really have to advocate for yourself.

I didn’t feel like she wanted hard cases and only felt like she looked at my chart when she came in the room and didn’t really think treatments through

They always answer messages quickly but I never felt they cared or would advocate for me

I like her as a person and I really felt like she wanted me to be a mom and she will always answer emails but I felt like she’d be better with easier cases. I never felt like she thought about my treatment and never looked at my chart and records until she was in the room. I was never confident that’s I was getting the best treatment

Be an advocate for yourself. Research and know what treatment you want to do. She’ll let you do it but you have to suggest it

I remember her saying she used the same protocol for every ivf.

I was lucky to have full coverage

Clinic is great. Sometimes there were emergencies that took priority over scheduled appointment so sometimes making back to school or work aren't always possible. With so many appointments it is hard when you dont get seen in time.

Never remembered what we discussed or i guess didnt write down everything, and not very compassionate

The nurses were why i kept going, they motivated me and hugged me when i left his office in tears. They were so respectful and i wouldnt have made it as far as i did without them. They really are top notch!

Just not what i was expecting, wanted more conpassion and understanding. Lack of warmth and how could a man ever underatand the emptiness you feel when youve been told that getting pregnant naturally is not an option. And when treatments fail no reassurance of furture treatments working

He is a good at what he does just isnt very personable

Pennsylvania has no insurance coverage for any fertility treatments. The only thing my insurance covered was the office visits.

The clinic has an Acupuncturist which is a great asset for them.

Dr menke is very nice and personable. She is a very caring doctor

Over the 3 years I have been going to this office I have not had a good experience with the nurses. With the exception of maybe 2-3 nurses, they were not very compassionate or considerate of me as a patient

Dr menke is very straightforward, she gives you the facts but she does it in a respectable and compassionate way. She comes across as a caring doctor. When I have an appointment with her it is in her office and not in an exam room where I have to see a med srudent while waiting for her. She thoroughly looked into my chart and followed up with what she said she was going to. She actually called me 5 minutes after I left her office to update me on insurance coverage

Come prepared with questions

I only had treatment with dr menke for one iui. She kindly gave me letrozole instead of clomid because I had such a bad experience with clomid in the past

Specialist copay for office visits and deductible for iui