Kimberly Moon

I've been a patient of Dr. Moon's for about three years, and have seen her about seven times: once for an initial consultation, again for a second consultation two years later, three or four times during my monitoring for my four IUIs, and most recently for another consultation after my IUIs were not successful. Every time, she has been warm, empathetic, and helpful. I really appreciate how she writes out the details of my protocol--the protocol itself and the medical explanation behind it--on a separate sheet of paper so that I can take it home with me. While I saw her only occasionally during my monitoring, I never expected to see her every day, as my clinic is large and the nurses are very capable. When she broke the news that I have low ovarian reserve, she showed a lot of compassion, even when I got very emotional in her office. She also encouraged me to explore options (donor egg and donor embryo) that I wouldn't have considered; clearly, she cares about getting me to my end goal of a baby. I have referred multiple friends to her. While I haven't yet been successful in getting pregnant, I consider this a fault of my eggs, rather than Dr. Moon--she's not a magician! I feel lucky to have a doctor who is so supportive, particularly since I'm a non-traditional patient (as a single mom by choice).

Also , it's helpful if you look through the clinic's website before seeing her, as it has a lot of good information on it; with a bit of background, you'll be able to ask informed questions and make the most of your time with Dr. Moon.

Dr. Moon has been warm, friendly, and empathetic throughout my treatment, from my initial consultation through my most recent IUI. She shared her own experience with infertility very early on, and established a good rapport with me, which was important to me as a single mom by choice. When I broke down sobbing in her office, she never made me feel embarrassed or uncomfortable. I put a lot of stock in bedside manner, and Dr. Moon has absolutely exceeded my expectations since day 1.

Based on my initial testing, Dr. Moon diagnosed me with low ovarian reserve. She indicated that if cost was no object, she would recommend that I go straight to IVF. Because I have no insurance coverage for fertility treatment, cost is an object. She said I could try a few IUIs, and then decide to go to IVF, or then go to donor embryo. I appreciated that she didn't try to push one protocol over another, and left this very personal decision up to me. In terms of IUI natural versus medicated, she indicated that medicated IUIs would cost more and have a higher risk of multiples, without much of a payoff (ie, they would only raise my chance of a successful pregnancy by a few percentage points). After I did a first IUI completely unmedicated, she suggested that I use a trigger shot (Ovidrel) for my second IUI; I appreciated that she was looking at and thinking about my protocol and what would be most successful. I did three more IUIs, unmedicated except for a trigger shot, none of which were successful--but based on Dr. Moon's initial prognosis, I didn't really expect them to be. I did the IUIs because I needed to give using my own eggs a shot before I moved to donor egg or embryo. Dr. Moon understood and supported this decision. After four unsuccessful IUIs, she recommended that I move to another protocol, and I concurred.

Robin has been great--extremely responsive and easy to get in touch with, very warm and friendly and helpful. I've always felt like she's in my corner and I could ask her anything.

Shady Grove feels like an institution, and that carries pros and cons with it. I call it the "Bank of America" of fertility clinics, in the sense that they dominate the local market here. That said, while I usually prefer a more intimate, personal approach, I decided to stick with them because I love my doctor and nurse, and because I think they get results (even if I haven't yet been successful). Also, because they are larger, they are able to offer additional resources like support groups (the one that I attend has been invaluable).

I had insurance coverage for most of my diagnostic procedures and consultations, and for none of my actual fertility procedures. I paid $1200 for each IUI (actually, I paid $1140, as I had a 5% discount through their discount program).

N/a (though I think she usually recommends single embryo transfer).

Dr. Moon is very open and a candid communicator. She was honest about whether she thought I should pursue treatment, and when one cycle wasn't going well, she was honest about whether she thought I should cancel or not. I really appreciate the fact that every time I talk to her, I know I'm hearing exactly what she thinks about my situation.

I would just say good luck with the treatment! There are definitely no worries or concerns about Dr. Moon herself.

I find Dr. Moon very personable and honest, which is great. Sometimes the small niceties are missing -- e.g., once I had a retrieval on my birthday and no one noticed, even though they asked me my birth date multiple times and the current date was written down everywhere, LOL.

I don't remember all the details of my retrieval, but I think the procedures were pretty standard. I used Bravelle (+ one other drug I'm not remembering), standard trigger shots (only one intramuscular), and never had any problems recovering from the actual retrievals.

I don't remember many specifics, but I always found everyone friendly, empathetic, and caring.

Shady Grove does a huge business in the DC-area and knows how to treat its patients. There are no "emotional frills" -- or maybe I just haven't needed them -- but the treatment is efficient and empathetic to its patients' needs.

I remember that I got 4 cycles/20 eggs for $12k + med costs. There was a refund if you only did one (or maybe two) cycle(s), but since I didn't take that option I don't remember the details.

I haven't gone through embryo transfer yet, but Dr. Moon seems open to eSET, for which I am extremely grateful.

Dr. Moon is extremely efficient (i.e. brisk in her manner), but she's also extremely thorough and approachable. She shared early on that she went through IVF to conceive her own children, so she's able to empathize. I found her to be warm, friendly, and willing to answer as many questions as I could throw at her.

You're in good hands! Let her know early on if you're the type of patient who wants to know the nitty-gritty of treatment details, as she tends to only offer information about the very next step unless you request more detail.

I appreciate that Dr. Moon treats me like a fellow adult with intelligence and agency over my care. I never felt that she was condescending to me. I also get the impression that she tailors the information provided to her patients according to the amount of detail they desire.

I was "old" (37 at first consult, 40 at treatment) with mixed signs of diminished ovarian reserve. Dr. Moon recommended (and used) an estrogen priming protocol. Still in the stims phase of my first IVF cycle, but so far the response is approximately what she predicted (i.e. not many eggs, but we weren't expecting many).

Kate is so on top of her game! She gets back to me almost instantaneously whenever I have questions or concerns, and she's generally able to anticipate issues before they arise.

Shady Grove is a machine. I thought I would experience this as a downside--it even led me to a different clinic for my initial attempts--but I ended up viewing it as a net positive. They're efficient. They're experienced. They are laden with resources. Every recommendation is stats-driven because they have such a wealth of data available, but I found my doctor willing to tailor my treatment according to my personal history and input. I never felt like I was slipping through the cracks the way I did at my old clinic.

Self-pay with Aetna discount. Fresh IVF single cycle with ICSI: $7500. Fresh cycle with ICSI and cryopreservation for PGS: $10,700 (plus $2000 to off-site PGS lab). Additional FET: $1850.

Shady Grove as a practice has so much data at their fingertips because they're a machine. Their recommendations are very specific to your age, prognosis, and history. But they certainly try to minimize the risk of multiples.

Dr. Moon overall was a nice lady. I am a nurse and understood many of the things that were going on but my husband did not and he always felt dismissed. I saw her on my initial consultation and one other time. She did take time to come and give me an ultrasound while the regular staff was at lunch and I was having a miscarriage. Other than that she never performed one procedure. I saw a variety of other dr's. She did call after my miscarriage and I explained to her a complacation that I was having and she brushed me off. I had to be seen at an urgent care. She never even called after my failed transfer

Ask a lot of questions ans do not expect much

Many times when I would go in for my blood draws or scans there was only standing room because there were so many patients. It was very impersonal. Everyone there is nervous and scared and possibly desperate and they just chat about whats for lunch and what they did for the weekend. Very insensitive.

I did a round of drugs for egg retrieval (injections, pills and vaginal suppository). Had a "practice" egg insertion, the actually incantation and then a frozen transfer. During the frozen cycle I participated in a clinical trial.

Jennifer was very organized but she would mainly communicate via email. If you called you would never get an answer. When I was actively going through a miscarriage she never once said sorry or showed any sympathy she only told me to calm down

They arw good at making appointments that work for you. The phlebotomist are super nice and they are the only ones who remember your name. The receptionist are very rude and unprofessional

Around $10,000

She only suggested/recommended single transfer

I'm a fan - I imagine success has something to do with it, but the overall experience was good. I knew by the time I got to Dr. Moon that I was going to struggle conceiving, and that it wasn't for any identifiable reason. That helped temper my expectations I think. I thought she was reasonably realistic (given my numbers that gave no reason to think my results should be abysmal), and confident without being arrogant. I know I asked lots of questions at times, and all were answered patiently.

Shady Grove is a bit of a factory, yes, but I felt like Dr. Moon individually took sufficient time to meet with me, answer my questions, go over my past history (and abysmal results) and talk about options. She personally called with the information on transfer day, which I greatly appreciated. She was great during appointments as well.

Standard antagonist protocol - BCP followed by FSH, menopur and then cetrotide I think. Attempting to keep growth slow but steady, and keep all follicles in range. Aiming for fewer high quality follicles (as someone who could produce a fair number, but of poor quality). Standard trigger criteria, but we held off a day or two based on history, so things were slightly larger. On my FET, it was medicated, so BCP and then something (can't recall).

Nurses were hit or miss. Staff as a whole was a bit hit or miss, though more good than bad. Appreciated the splitting of blood draws from general nurses (keeping it with people who knew what they were doing). I'd describe things as generally efficient, and well run, on the nursing side.

I think the strength is in the solid lab, significant experience and range of doctors to choose from. They do seem to use standard protocols, but that was fine. I'm not crazy about the BCP use, but it's a must - there's not a lot of flexibility in that area. I was able to get some concessions on some policies by getting Dr. Moon on board, and it was frustrating to have to do so. The standard weekend hours and multiple locations was good - no worrying about timing there. They generally had a range of appointments available, though weekends could be hit or miss. Some things were very standardized which generally helped it run smoothly. But there were times things backed up, with waits of 45+ minutes. The financial people may have changed in the past 2 years, but that was the worst/most maddening part. It may be less so if you're not using insurance, but I had to do a significant amount of leg work on running down pre-authorizations and getting statuses and poking and prodding. It was incredibly frustrating, and I would say that's the part that is most off putting about the clinic.

Insurance covered in large part, so I don't recall.

Dr. Moon was used to working with SMCs and was recommended to me. She reviewed my file and gave me plenty of time to talk about my history and the potential options at her clinic. I knew what I wanted to do and she was quick to help me figure out next steps and also worked hard to help me determine which donor was the right one for me.

I specifically sought out Dr. Moon on the recommendation of others due to the large size of the clinic and the factory feel of the operation. She was kind, listened to my story, helped me pick an egg donor, and was very responsive when I had an issue with the RE that handled my transfer.

I got pregnant on my first DE transfer so I didn't have a rigorous protocol.

I had very little experience with the nursing staff due to using DE. The staff who were around during my transfer were fine.

I think Shady Grove has a high quality lab and has high success due to this. The rest of the operation is large, I felt like a # and they had several major errors during my time there--for example failing to get an ultrasound on my egg donor on her last visit so they had her trigger without all of the necessary info. The RE who handled my transfer was awful and I worried that he purposely botched my transfer due to his attitude. In the end, I luckily got pregnant that cycle and was done with any fertility treatments.

I chose a guaranteed DE program and it was expensive. I think the cost was $30,500. I've tried to block out the cost but my daughter was well worth the money!

The clinic strongly prefers eSET for DE.

Treated me as if I was a younger patient. I am older, so treatments selection may have been too harsh on my eggs. She adjusted protocol which yielded more, poor quality eggs. She didn't listen to my concerns and my money went down the drain along with precious time.

IF you're older, find someone else. If you're younger, you may stand a chance conceiving.

Eventhough my hormone levels and AMH were that of a younger person, my protocol was not tailored for a person of advanced age and I feel the "standard" protocols I was going through possibly fried my eggs, hence further issues with egg quality. I kept insisting for other options and it wasn't considered at all.

THe first cycle was standard protocol- Gonal F , menopur, centrotide. HGH. The second included the previously mentioned but also a lupron stop..yielded more eggs then previous protocol. Overall, over 41 eggs retrieved but none were of quality.

There were issues in the beginning but overall I think it she was better.

old standard conservative methods- resistant to alternatives. Acupuncture and yoga are now being encouraged. When I had mentioned it during my cycle, I was told that it wouldn't make a difference . Older patients should really seek elsewhere for treatment.

Over $25k

Doctor Moon was a total professional with my wife and I. As this procedure is already delicate and somewhat stressful for my wife and I, Dr. Moon remained engaged, very attentive and absolutely patient with us.

Be prepared to have your mind as ease with Dr. Moon and her wonderful staff

Dr. Kimberly Moon was very warm and caring with my wife and I. She was patient and very good in helping us achieve every necessary step to move forward with our journey.

We've only reached the point of me taking the Clomid for my low sperm count. We have not moved any further as of yet.

Every time we had questions or sent emails to Katie she would get back to us right away and remained engaged with us.

The clinic first of all was very clean and smelled good. The staff was very professional and friendly. It didn't feel like a fertility clinic at all. There were so many gorgeous pictures of precious babies in the clinic that it made you feel like everyone in the staff is rooting for every single client to give life.

The total for our procedure is around $23,000

You will never see or talk to her other than the initial consult and when planning treatment.

I only saw her twice. From there the communication was with her nurse coordinator. I feel like a number. She's not warm or welcoming.

Spent under $1k for two rounds of Timed Intercourse, 2 doctor consults, HSG, Semen Analysis, and bloodwork.

She was very patient with us. Walked us through all of our options. Educated us the infertility and the unfortunate and difficult place of being "unexplained."

She was honest and professional yet understood the deeply emotional aspects of infertility.

A clinic was always available and worked with your schedule. Unfortunately, there were some very long wait times on some days - particularly weekends.

I had most of the treatments covered by insurance.