Geraldine Ekpo

At first I really liked Dr. Ekpo. She was blunt but kind, and seemed knowledgeable about the the entire fertility field. My ultimate dislike and distrust came after my 2nd and 3rd IUI with Laurel Fertility. One thing off the bat, the online calendar and app is just terrible. Very difficult to access and with all the medications and timing needs, this was frustrating. My first cycle they measured my lining at around 3.5 mm, but still went forward with the IUI. At the time, I just put my blind trust in the doctors and figured they would do what they thought would be most successful-NOT TRUE. Any other Dr. will tell you that you want your lining to get to 8mm to have a decent shot at pregnancy, and I wasn't even halfway there. I feel it was morally irresponsible for them to perform 3 IUI's on me when my lining was less than 5 each time. Also, my cycles required LOTS of monitoring ultrasound appts, and at $490 per appt, this became ridiculously expensive. These utlrasound appts were 5-10 minutes, for $490!!! insane. They didn't make any attempts to get my insurance to cover it as a diagnostic tool, so I had to pay out of pocket for everything. Dr. Ekpo also straight up lied to me about a certain procedure which is what ultimately makes me feel I would NEVER recommend anyone go there. She told me there was no way to do a HSG dye test in the same cycle as an IUI, and it just isn't true. Many other doctors do this and I believe the only reason she told me I couldn't was to get more money and more visits out of me.

Do your research and don't go with a private clinic because you think you'll receive better care, it just isn't true.

Each IUI cycle I was on Letrazole, with lots of monitoring ultrasounds to see how my follicles and uterine lining were developing. The first two were about the same-letrazole, trigger shot, IUI. The third one they added estrogen injections mid cycle to try and boost my lining since I never got past 4mm with previous two cycles, then another trigger shot and another failed IUI. I wasn't given any other alternatives except for IVF which they began pushing on me after the first failed IUI.

$490 PER ULTRASOUND! And during all my cycles with Dr. Ekpo, I needed 4-6 ultrasounds before the IUI. It was absurdly expensive. Around 2k for the actual IUI, and several hundred dollars for medications. My bloodwork was covered by insurance.

I decided to leave behind my frustrations and anger with Laurel Fertility back in 2019 when I received their treatments. But now that I received a collections bill for nearly $400 a year and a half later, I am beyond pissed. I too have received no letter in the mail, and no notification in my email or portal of an outstanding balance before it went to collections. I called their office several times trying to get in touch with someone who could explain the bill to me, with no avail. Sadly this is just a further reflection of a clinic that's clearly in disarray. Back in mid-2019, feeling desperate after trying for a couple years and getting a recommendation from a friend, my husband and I got in touch with Laurel Fertility. Dr Ekpo made us feel very comfortable, and the pricing felt reasonable. After a few tests and an ultrasound, she diagnosed my situation as "unexplained infertility". We opted for the IUI treatment and went through the process. A few days after the procedure, I came down with very concerning symptoms. I felt extremely faint, and had diarrhea and heavy cramping. I called Laurel fertility to alert them of these symptoms. They didn't put my concerns at bay, or care to explain what was happening to me. They just told me very impatiently to see if the symptoms go away after a few days. It was through an emergency appointment with my primary doctor where she explained that the symptoms are likely a swollen cyst from the clomid treatment. If the symptoms persist and get worse, it could mean a fatal ruptured cyst. At this point I felt very neglected and angry that Laurel fertility did not provide me with the information and care I needed. Thankfully I recovered, and was hopeful that the treatment would result in a pregnancy. But that window came and passed. I never received a call from Laurel Fertility about how I was managing after my symptoms scare, no less inquire if the treatment was successful or not. Back to the diagnosis of "unexplained fertility" I received- some months later I'm referred to a wonderful gynecologist named Dr. Mona Orady. Five minutes into my ultrasound she suspected I had severe endometriosis which was the explanation to my infertility. I had surgery to remove the endometriosis, and am now 25 weeks pregnant! I'm delighted that I finally found the answer, but this should have been with Laurel Fertility. I have experienced neglect, mis-diagnosis, poor treatment, and a shady $400 mystery bill from collections. I never bother to write negative reviews, but for a business that has this type of emotional component and medical responsibility, I implore you to take your business elsewhere and save yourself the anguish.

The cost was reasonable and we paid upfront, but then received a $400 bill from collections a year and a half later, with no notification from the clinic that we had an outstanding balance.