Kathleen Hong

During my first round at RMA (which was very straightforward and successful), I was treated by another doctor who has since left. However, Dr. Hong did my HSG and my retrieval, both of which I was incredibly nervous for. When I returned to RMA several years later for my second child, I requested to see Dr. Hong because of the compassion she showed me and the warmth and friendliness of her approach. Dr. Hong is very bright and quick thinking, yet she also takes the time to get to know you personally. After a disappointing miscarriage, she was so reassuring and generous with her time. She changed the approach and made sure to personally perform my transfer. The amount of times she went out of her way to connect with me and attend to my concerns was what made her stand out in my mind.

Absolutely request to see Dr. Hong if you want a mix of warmth, knowledge, and accessibility.

In 2018 I went back to RMA to use my frozen embryos. We initially tried estrogen pills to build my lining, but that was unsuccessful. Dr. Hong changed my protocol to be more similar to what I did for my retrieval in 2014 which included follistim, ganirelix, and pregnyl, which thickened my lining enough for transfer.

As mentioned earlier, it does get crowded on weekends and holidays. The earlier you go within the window the better.

I was very fortunate that my costs were almost entirely covered by insurance.

We were only ever interested in a single embryo transfer, so this worked well with Dr. Hong's and RMA's preferences.

Dr. Hong is very approachable and easy to talk with. She was very helpful in explaining everything and taking the time to answer our questions until we were satisfied. She comes across to me as very research/fact based and practical, which is why I think we immediately liked working with her. She has a lot of energy, but is also caring and sensitive. I appreciate the ability to be able to speak with her directly on the phone even in between appointments. Our treatment plan changed a few times and she proactively called me to explain the rationale behind each decision. She performed almost all of my monitoring visits and also performed my embryo transfer. I always felt in good hands, both clinically and compassion-wise.

Ask as many questions as you have until you are comfortable and fully understand your course of treatment. You will be well taken care of.

When we first consulted with Dr. Hong, she reviewed several treatment strategies with us. We already had frozen embryos in storage from our first IVF cycle, but they were still at Boston IVF. We wanted to try for another child using only these frozen embryos (we were not interested in pursuing any further IVF cycles). She explained several available options, and ultimately we decided that we would ship our embryos to RMA NJ (the most expensive shipping of my life!!). We would then do an embryo thaw to perform CCS, in order to rule out any unviable embryos. Next the viable remaining embryos would be frozen again in preparation for FET. We also discussed option for knowing the sex. I would undergo a natural (unmedicated) cycle. I didn't even know that natural cycles were an option with FET! I was very happy about this. Although it required more monitoring leading up the time of ovulation (many 6am appointments!!), the bonus was that I didn't have to take any medications aside from the trigger shot and then progesterone (vaginal suppository). Only one injection! It was so much easier than my previous fresh IVF cycle. Right before our embryos shipped, Dr. Hong called me in a panic because she had just been discussing our case with the embryologist who realized in my medical records that our former IVF cycle was the result of conventional IVF, not ICSI. You cannot do CCS with conventional IVF embryos! We were initially very disappointed to hear this, but rebounded quickly and decided to pursue the FET cycle without any genetic testing, just letting nature take its course so to speak. Ultimately we got very lucky. The first natural cycle FET led to pregnancy, and our baby girl was born at 41 weeks on 11/30/2018.

We received financial counseling from the first consultation. The ballpark cost that we were originally expecting for thawing/refreezing/CCS testing of embryos (none of which would be covered by insurance) would be approx. $6550. In addition, we would be paying for the courier to move our embryos from Boston to NJ = approximately $800. The FET cycle itself was expected to cost $4,475 + upwards of $1600 for medication. My insurance would offset some of this cost.

Dr. Hong was very clear from the beginning that we would do a single embryo transfer. I didn't challenge it.

Kathleen Hong is one of the most professional and warmest doctors I have ever come across. Women coming to her are at some of the lowest points in there lives (I know I was), but she was comforting yet professional, clear without being cold or insensitive and encouraging without giving you false hope. I cried a few times during initial consults, but she slid tissues over and kept talking and reassuring us we would have our baby one day. I was so happy my tears wasn't made into a "thing". Three years later and I'm ready for baby #2. And I was SO nervous to do this all again. But after our first meeting I remembered how and why I got through it the first time. IT WAS HER. She is absolutely AMAZING.

Be open, honest and don't be nervous. You are in the BEST hands.

She told us the likelyhood of getting pregnant with IUI (20% in our case), and let us make the choice to do that or jump to IVF. We chose IUI and Dr. Hong suggested 3 rounds only. She didn't want us to waste our time or money doing more, but felt 2 wasn't a fair amount to give it it work. IVF protocols used were standard for RMANJ. We got a beautiful baby girl after our first embryo transfer, so whatever the rationale was, I approve!

Bloodwork was quick. Ultrasound waits took much longer.

IVF with meds was about 18k+. IUI with injectible meds was 4k+

Since this was my first embryo transfer, she strongly advised against a multiple embryos. The risk to mom and babies if both took wasn't one she wanted to put me in. I agreed. IF the first failed (and it didn't) my husband and I might have considered pushing for two the second round.

I might not have seen her every time but she worked a long an amazing nurse who would call me all the time and at any point I felt that the nurse could not answer my question she would call me back within a few hours. She was there trying to figure out the best plan and the safest way to get me pregnant. She was able to explain in understandable terms what was happening as well as what the next steps would be. At the end of my treatment I loved her so much I made her come out of a meeting and we both hug as we said good bye!

She is an amazing doctor and you are lucky to have her on your side

I went through many treatments but basically when they were trying to retrieve eggs or I was going through iui I used gonal F and the highest dose because otherwise my folicals did not grow.

Well oiled machine with amazing nurses that I became friendly with because I was there all the time for so long

The 3 rounds of iui and 4 rounds of Ivf were covered under my insurance. The donor egg cycle was $48,000. It was about $2400 for genetic testing on the embryos which I did twice.

I only wanted eSET so it was never even a discussion we ever had

The first visit, Dr. Hong took time to understand what cancer treatments I had going on, and helped figure out the timeline for my fertility preservation. She outlined a timeline for me and gave me all of the pertinent information with colorful coding, complete with drawings and explanations. She continued to follow up with me and reached out to me continuously to address my concerns.

I would advise a friend to put all their trust into Dr. Hong, as she is truly competent and skilled.

I only had a short window for egg retrieval between my surgery and the beginning of my chemotherapy treatments. Dr. Hong had me begin my retrieval shots outside of the typical timeline, and explained it was totally fine and wouldn't result in an inferior quality cycle. She was completely correct.

The appointments were organized and efficient. The facility is amazing. The staff at morning monitoring are professional and caring. The monitoring window of hours is pretty strict.

14,000 for Egg retrieval, Icsi, Genetic testing for couple and genetic testing of embryo, embryo and egg freezing. (Not including medication)

Dr. Hong is a very patient and sympathetic doctor. She always took the time to listen and answer my questions and concerns. I feel like I was always being heard and supported by her. When I didn’t get the results I was hoping for, she would aknowledge my struggles.

Make sure you take an escribe role as a patient and do your research. There may be some questions that you need to raise that the doctor may not raise

I started with two retrievals and each on produced few eggs which did

I did my morning monitoring from another clinic since I lived out of state. The few times I did morning monitoring it seemed pretty organized. In the basking ridge location it was fine. From the smaller statelite locations it was very crowded and stressful experience. I really disliked the experience at the smaller offices

35k for retrievals 40k for donor eggs+ transfers

Dr Hong was excellent. She had a good bedside manner but was direct which was appreciated. She took stances and explained what informed her decisions. She gave us excellent recommendations that really considered our circumstances. She informed us of risks but ultimately showed confident decision making.

Ask to speak with her if the nurses give you a hard time. She will almost always make time within a few hours.

Started with 7 days of Alyacen to raise estrogen. Follistim AQ + Menopur. Ganirelix to suppress ovulation and Pregnyl for trigger.

egg retrieval cycle with ICSI was 13k + drug costs (2.5k) including genetic testing with insurance covering 50%.

She appears to be very evidence based, in her thought process. Doesn't try many, what if approaches. So if you are looking for someone who will try the kitchen sink method, she is not for you. She is willing to try alternative approaches, but doesn't offer them. When I wanted to try something new, she was willing, but didn't think it would change my outcome.

If you want someone who will try every theoretical/ aggressive approach and not something well proven, choose a different physician. She is so kind though and may be better with someone who needs a lot of hand holding.

I had 4 egg retrieval with microdose Lupron flare protocol. The rationale was that I have DOR and it would be the most effective

I had insurance coverage, so not sure of all the costs but I payed approx $4000 on CCD of up to 10 embryos over multiple retrievals and approx $4000 on testing and procedures before my insurance covered at 100%

I love dr Hong. She has been amazing. Calling me on weekends while she is out of town. Taking extra time to explain exactly what I can expect. I had a really rough 2nd egg retrieval. She called to check on me herself. She is caring and sweet. After the egg retrieval I was in a lot of pain. I could tell she cared and felt bad. I ended up with a hematoma because of the andominal retrieval. She really wanted the transfer to work for me. I remember her calling me after I spoke to the nurse hearing the news of my negative beta. Dr Hong left me a voicemail saying how sorry she was. She was so sincere and sweet. I would highly recommend her to a friend or family member.

The first consult she will not only explain everything to you she willl draw and write it down for you. She will tell you the good and bad

Egg retrieval was 2 vials of menopur and 300 gonal and cetrotide. For 2 rounds of stims. First round 5 eggs, 2 fertilized and 1 made it to blast and was pgs tested Normal. Second round. 6 eggs. 3 fertilized. 2 made to blast. 2 tested Normal for pgs. For my first frozen transfer I started on estradiol. 5 days before transfer I start with PIO injections. My transfer didn’t implant. I stopped all meds on day 9 after negative beta.

Most days I was in and out pretty quickly. There were a couple of days that took over an hour, which I thought was a long time.

Retrieval was about $15k including icsi and pgs testing. Frozen transfer was about $4K. We got some package for our second retrieval so it was about 8k.

If I had more than 2 embryos I would have pushed for 2 to transfer. I was good with transferring one since I only had 2.

I had no clue what to expect going to RMA and the first meeting with Dr. Hong reassured me I had made the best decision possible. She explained the process, what was required, where potential hiccups could happen and of course how the entire RMA staff is there to hand hold my husband and I through everything. I miscarriaged twice - one at 11 weeks when I had already been cleared by RMA - and I can remember our first conversation about restarting and how sympathetic she was to me - I felt like I was her best friend and she was doing everything in her power to support me. The second time I saw the same thing and the promise that we would keep going. She explained how if we tested the embryos it may net a better result - so I did it - without hesitating about the cost - because I 100% trusted her opinion. After our third transfer, which Dr. Hong made sure she was there for to do v. anyone else, I waited to hear the test results. March 7, 2017 @ 7:59a I received a voicemail from Dr. Hong telling me the news. I have yet to delete that voicemail because her positivity, excitement and friendliness still makes me feel warm inside. She stuck with us through so much bad and on November 16, 2017 we received so much good with the birth of our first child. She kept me grounded and upbeat and I owe her everything for our daughter. Looking forward to working with her through the next pregnancy - wouldn't want it any other way.

Do not hesitate to express any concerns or hesitations - she will be honest with you and give you the best recommendation based on a personalized plan. Don't hold back saying something you think may sound silly - it's all important - this is your family!

We received a complete itemized sheets from PGS testing, injectables and medications, processes and co-pays. They went through our insurance info with us and weeded through everything we'd have to pay out of pocket. I am lucky with my husband's insurance that we were basically covered so I don't remember the detailed $s.

Dr. Hong and the rest of the RMA crew definitely have the mentality of one happy baby at a time. While she respected my desire for transferring two embryos, she absolutely vocalized that she would prefer one at a time.

Dr. Hong is a very knowledgable physician. She understood, based on my hormone levels and AFC count, that an antagonist protocol with estrogen priming would be best suited to me to obtain optimal results. We trusted her completely throughout this process.

Ask her as many questions as you need to! She will definitely respond thoroughly.

My partner and I had a terrible experience at our former clinic. We had 20 frozen eggs thawed---and only 30 percent of those eggs survived. In addition, at the former clinic I also underwent a retrieval and obtained 8 eggs. Out of 11 embryos (from the frozen eggs and fresh cycle), none grew to day 5! Dr. Hong explained that she strongly believed this poor result was due to lab error as well as poor trigger shot timing on behalf of my former RE, but she couldn't be 100 percent sure. Well, she was right! In this cycle we had 6 fertilized embryos and 4 grew to blastocyst stage and 3 were biopsied. We are currently waiting for those results. She doesn't guarantee any will be normal (based on my age), but she timed the trigger shot earlier in order to optimize quality. She also tweaked my medication protocol (raised dose of gonal f to 300 from 225 and raised dose of menopur from 75 to 150 as well as added omnitrope) in order to ensure embryos grew at a faster rate.

Extremely easy! 15 minutes in and out. Lab work was done first followed by monitoring appointments with Dr. Hong. We did see another RE for a monitoring appointment on one occasion. He was impersonal but very efficient and knowledgable.

20k out of pocket

She prefers eSET and I agree with her approach. We don't know if we'll have any normal embryos. But if we do, we will definitely only be transferring one at a time.

She is very knowledgeable and also sensitive to our individual wishes as a couple throughout this process. Dr. Hong helped me understand our course of treatment and what our next steps will be. I feel confident that we are in good hands.

Ask all the questions! She is a wealth of information, but she can also explain things in a clear, concise, need-to-know basis. She will tell you as much or as little as you care to know about every step of the way.

We are waiting to move forward until we find out if we are able to retrieve my husband's sperm through MESA or TESE. She said to call her the very next day and let her know so we can proceed! She decided to hold off on doing a big workup on me, after all the testing I had already been through, because we are OOP and the course of treatment/testing would be completely different for IVF/ICSI or IUI with donor sperm or foster-adopt. If we are able to find sperm to freeze, we will evaluate me and proceed with a freeze-all cycle with ICSI and PGS. Since we would like to transfer all normal embryos, she definitely recommended the PGS so that we don't have the cost and heartache of unnecessary losses, and FET to give my body a break in between ER/transfer cycles. As far as waiting after a successful pregnancy to do each subsequent transfer, she explained that the wait can be a little longer after C-section vs. vaginal delivery, to prevent uterine rupture.

My initial consult with testing will be $450. I was given a complete breakdown including an estimate for retrieval $11,275, plus meds $5k+, anesthesia $600-1200, biopsy $1,700, PGS up to ten $2500, FET cycle approximately $5k.

RMA is amazing. All the of the doctors are so skilled. My nurse, Nicole B. is super caring and responsive to patient needs. I cannot say enough good about Dr. Hong. I recommend her for anyone who is nervous to start and is looking for a guiding hand. Her calm demeanor can make anyone going through this feel ready and supported.

Just do it. You won't regret calling and making the appointment to see Dr. Hong!

I had an antagonist protocol twice. Had to do with my PCOS. Triggered first retrieval with pregnyl and second time with novarel. Had ICSI, PGS, and assisted hatching. Had two miscarriages for a chromosomal issue. Was genetically screened and just having "bad luck" and the testing can't pick it up or prevent it. Hoping third transfer (preparing now) will work.

My insurance covered the retrieval and transfer. Had to pay a bunch for meds that were not completely covered and for the freezing and genetic testing of the embryos.

At our first appointment when Dr. Hong reviewed our detailed records of intercourse and cycle tracking and told us that she was surprised we weren't pregnant yet, I felt a huge weight lifted. Knowing that what we were doing should have led to a pregnancy made me feel ready to try interventions. She explained what the procedure was for our testing cycle and where we would proceed for our first medicated cycle. She gave us the estimate that we would most likely not need IVF and while it turned out that 4 cycles of IUI didn't lead to pregnancy, we were happy because she didn't make us keep trying something that didn't work. She was ready for us to move onto IVF at that point. Dr. Hong took time on days she got to the clinic early to personally perform my morning monitoring (even when she wasn't the on call doctor that day). On those days she was making a special effort to perform my ultrasound and see how my follicles were developing. Her personal interest in our case was really touching. While she always made the decision for does of medication and the timing of our trigger/IUI based on the ultrasound pictures and notes from the doctor performing my monitoring.....the days she personally looked always felt more thorough. I got the feeling that Dr. Hong was genuinely rooting for us!

You are so lucky! She is very willing to explain things and answer questions - don't hesitate to ask!

1 cycle on Clomid. IUI w/ Ovidrel trigger. 3 mature follicles but thin-ish lining. Negative pregnancy test. 3 cycles with Follistim injections (doses between 25 - 100 units; MOSTLY 75 units). IUI w/ Ovidrel trigger. Each cycle was 3 or 4 mature follicles. Negative pregnancy test. 1 Fresh IVF cycle. 10 days BC pills. Antagonist cycle began with Follistim 75 and 1 vial of Menopur for 9 days; On the 6th day added Ganirelix for 4 days. The next day did 1/2 dose of Pregnyl at night and 40IU of Lupron. 12 hours later exactly, did another 40IU of Lupron. Retrieval was timed for the following day and transfer was 6 days later. On the IVF cycle we did ICSI with PGD so we could have the best possible outcomes. My last monitoring ultrasound showed 25 follicles. 22 mature eggs were retrieved and 15 fertilized properly with ICSI. By the day of our transfer - there were 9 blasts. We transferred 1 blast and are currently pregnant with identical twins. I did acupuncture throughout all cycles above. Additionally, had laser acupuncture on the day of transfer immediately before and after the transfer.

Monitoring hours were between 6-7:30 am on weekdays and 6-10am on weekends. This was EXTREMELY convenient to me. I was able to go before work each day and it didn't impact my job at all. I didn't have to take time off of work or really inform my employer except for days where I was having a test (saline sonogram, etc) or procedure (IUI, retrieval, transfer). I have heard of some clinic's that don't have early morning monitoring and I honestly would not have been able to pursue ART without this convenience since I have little flexibility in my job's schedule. Most days seemed like a well oiled machine. I moved quickly through the blood draw area to the ultrasound area with minimal wait time. On a few occasions if they were short a doctor, the line did back up - but I wouldn't say this was the norm. Weekends were usually more busy because a lot of the satellite offices are closed, but as long as I went in knowing that it wasn't so bad.

I am lucky in that a lot was covered by insurance. We paid $1200 to freeze our embryos and $3500 for ICSI and PGD. Our initial genetic testing (prior to any cycles) was $300. Plus co-pays for each visit.

Dr. Hong was thorough and explained the whole process, risks, and possible outcomes. She made me feel comfortable every step of the way. She was very caring and showed compassion. I remember how stressed I was during my first appointment that I burst into tears and Dr. Hong put me at ease and reassured me that there is always hope.

Just be patient and don’t give up. There are so many causes of infertility and with today’s modern medicine and procedures everything is possible. I know it’s difficult when you are dealing with such issues and finances could put a huge strain on your decision to pursue fertility treatments but there are so many options today.

We had male factor infertility. Due to no sperm count, my husband had surgery to extract the sperm. Dr. Hong discussed our options and we agreed the best option would be to do IVF with ICSI. We transferred two embryos which resulted in the live birth of our beautiful twin daughters.

The IVF procedure cost approximately $10,000 plus $2,500 for ICSI

Dr. Hong recommended single embryo, however, we decided to transfer two at the same time. We were comfortable with our decision.

We are just getting started with Dr. Hong and found her to be warm and kind. She was very thorough in coverage of the donor egg process, and even drew us a little diagram telling up what to expect. We are currently waiting to choose a donor.

If you are looking for someone that has a warm, maternal nature about here this is the doctor to see.

We will be using donor eggs, not sure what protocol she will use for that donor.

Our insurance will cover some of our donor egg process but we will still have to manage a good deal of out of pocket expenses.

We will be doing eSet, based on past twin loss.

I really like Dr Hong. I don't hear from her a lot personally but rather hear from her nurse. I have heard from her directly for issues that require more discussion. I find her to be compassionate and positive and willing to walk through things with me so I can understand. Hoping this next IUI will give me my baby!

Let her know your questions and if you need more time with her personally:

I am doing IUI. First round was completely natural and that resulted in a negative test (although it was slightly elevated so egg may have implanted briefly). Second was with the lightest dose of clomid. I got pregnant but unfortunately had to have a D&C. We have not changed protocol and will be doing an IUI in the next two weeks. I am hopeful for success! Also taking DHEA and COQ10 for egg quality this round.

Thus far a few thousand

N/a

Dr Hong is excellent but the setup at RMA of NJ is very impersonal and doesn't make for optimal patient experience.

You must be very proactive in managing your care. Dr Hong is great but you need to fight to get to her through the nursing staff, which can be difficult to deal with.

Really crowded on weekends - 90+ min wait even just for bloodwork. Weekdays better but you have to go really early.

She is a great doctor and always there for any questions or concerns. She is very positive but also tells you how it is which is exactly what I wanted. When I lost my baby she was calling me to check up on me and then had me in her office to try to explain what had happened and how to move forward. It was very reassuring, and that is exactly what

To stay positive and just listen to what she has to say. Trust her!!!

I only did an fet with her.

Luckily my insurance covered my fet 100%

Totally agree with eset