Lawrence Grunfeld

Dr. Grunfeld is kind but not overly warm. He gets straight to the point, which I appreciate. He's direct and no nonsense. I felt that he was closely watching my progression on the stimulation medications, and toward the end, he had me come in every day for monitoring and blood work to see if they could push me a little farther. it was reassuring to know that he was constantly reviewing my case, rather than applying a generic protocol

If you're looking for someone who is overly emotive or compassionate, he may not be for you. But he is a kind person and I felt that he was paying attention to me as a patient. Which is what mattered to me.

I felt like Dr. Grunfeld tailored my treatment protocol to me and my unique chemistry/makeup. He was on top of my cycle and was willing to make tweaks mid-cycle increase my success

Dr. Grunfeld had me prime with estrogren patches and Ganirelix before my cycle began, then I did 14 days of 300 Gonal -F and Menopure once my cycle started. He started me out on 2 amps of Menopure but eventually upped my dose to 3 in hopes of getting a better response. I also took Ganirelix for 4 days toward the end. I triggered with lupron and novarell. I'm 41 and developed 9 follicles between my two ovaries. He was happy with this.

The nursing staff was amazing at RMA NY. They were organized, on the ball, and compassionate. I felt like they were on the top of their game and like I wasn't going to fall through the cracks

RMA NY was very organized! I've been to other large clinics that operate in a similar way (eg factory style monitoring hours), but never felt the others were as organized and on top of things as RMA. They called my prescriptions in in a timely manner, were very detailed in their daily instructions and blood work results. I felt like I was taken care of. The only downside (which didn't bother me) is that it can get quite busy during monitoring hours. But because they are so organized, and have the s$!t together, it didn't bother me.

They are a well-oiled machine. Monitoring hours can get quite busy, but they are organized and it goes pretty quickly. They also have several other locations throughout NYC and you can go to any of those locations for monitoring during the week, which is nice.

The total cost of treatment (not including meds) is about $15,000 for IVF plus ICSI

We haven't gotten this far yet.

Although Dr. Grunfeld is clearly knowledgable and an expert in the field, he does not spend time with his patients or adequately explain risks or even the possibility of success with a procedure. Dr. Grunfeld was overly optimistic that my 2013 egg freezing cycle would yield good results. When the use of those eggs in 2018 was a total failure, he showed little compassion or concern and did not follow up with me and my husband to advice us on next steps. I was shocked that Dr. Grunfeld showed little concern after my husband and I experienced two miscarriages from spontaneous pregnancy *and* a failed egg fertilization cycle in which my 24 eggs yielded 0 embryos that tested PGS normal. It was disheartening that we had to call his office numerous times to get even a short (5-minute) conversation with him and that his response was to simply suggest that we do another fresh IVF cycle. I felt like a number and had no confidence that Dr. Grunfeld really cared whether my husband and I were able to conceive.

I would not recommend that any prospective patients seek treatment with Dr. Grunfeld at RMA. I would recommend going to a different clinic. I now see Dr. Samantha Pfeifer at Weil Cornel, and am having a much better experience.

Dr. Grunfeld barely spoke to me. In 2013, I froze 24 eggs through one cycle of egg freezing with Dr. Grunfeld. The doctor was pleased with the result and informed me that there was no need to do another freezing cycle. In 2018, my husband and I sought to use the eggs after experiencing two first trimester miscarriages. The egg thawing and fertilization process was largely unsuccessful with only 1 embryo surviving to the 5-day blastocyst stage. That embryo was deemed abnormal through PGS testing. An RMA nurse called me with the results. I was shocked. The nurse was rushed and said that we lost a lot of eggs in the thawing process and the fertilization process, and that we also lost more than normal during the stage of growing embryos to the 5-day blastocyst stage. She offered no explanation why our results were so bad. My husband and I were so upset that we called the clinic three times to arrange for a conversation with Dr. Grunfeld. When we finally spoke to him, the doctor was flip. He said that my eggs (and our resulting embryos) did not do as well as planned, but that these results were statistically possibly and essentially no big deal. Dr. Grunfeld then suggested we simply do another IVF cycle--as if it were no big deal financially, physically, or emotionally. I was disappointed, particularly because Dr. Grunfeld had been so optimistic that securing 24 eggs through a freezing cycle would yield good results. Dr. Grunfeld spoke to me and my husband for only around five minutes. The casualness of his reaction to the fact that my husband and I had two miscarriages (conceived without IVF) and a failure egg freezing/fertilization cycle shocked us. We indicated that we would seek another opinion before determining how to proceed. Neither Dr. Gurnfeld nor his office ever called us back to ask what we wanted to do. The entire interaction with Dr. Grunfeld and RMA left us feeling that the doctor and clinic as a whole only cared about our money--not about delivering health care that would help us conceive.

Dr. Grunfeld gave me gonal F and Follistum for egg stimulation. He also added ganirelex later in the cycle and Ovidrel for trigger.

The nurses had little interaction with me. They would call each day with my dosage of stimulation drugs. But they did not get to know me or even engage in friendly conversation. I felt like a step in the factory assembly line.

RMA has very good doctors--but the entire approach of the clinic is to do large numbers of IVF and egg freezing cycles without little care for the patient. It is very difficult to arrange for a one-on-one conversation with the doctor or nursing staff. I felt like a number during my egg freezing cycle and when I returned to the clinic to use my frozen eggs -- which did not yield any usable embryos. The clinic is also very challenging to work with concerning billing. Even though my insurance provider covers IVF, RMA required me to pay the clinic directly for certain procedures, which forced me to seek reimbursement from my insurance company. On one occasion, the doctor recommended that I take a certain test; the RMA billing staff indicated that because they could not guarantee that my insurance company (CIGNA) would cover it, I would just have to pay for the cost directly I was disappointed that RMA, as a clinic that works on a daily basis with CIGNA, would not facilitate my access to IVF coverage by discussing my need for this test with the insurance provider. This was just one example of many by which the clinic conveys that all it cares about is your money, rather than whether the services provided yield the patient the best chance at having a healthy, live baby.

I paid approximately $11K for egg freezing, $4K in storage fees, $3K in genetic testing for me and my husband, and $3K for egg thawing and PGS testing.

Dr. Grunfeld prefers SET, which is fine. My husband and I had no normal embryos to transfer.

Not a good listener; talks without pause so you have to interrupt to say or ask anything. Did not tell us I had diminished ovarian reserve until at least 6 months after treatment started. Because we were instead told nothing was wrong with either of us we delayed treatment. He never told me that there was a possibility anything could go wrong during my IVF cycle other than not getting pregnant after transfer, so I was shocked, confused and devastated when he cancelled my cycle because I did not produce eggs. This is after he told me when my retrieval date would be without ever saying it was contingent on the stimulating medication working. I never knew not getting to retrieval was a possibility.

Ask a lot of questions. Find out as much as you can about treatments before seeing him. Take it upon yourself to get educated as he is very relaxed and doesn't seem to think need fertility help is as traumatic to patients as it can be.

Felt rushed through visits and had to be incredibly forceful to have a chance to ask questions. Did not feel he really wanted to answe my questions. Did not give us a thorough diagnosis or explain the process and possible setbacks that can happen during an IVF cycle.

Since I was ovulating on our initial visit, we opted to try IUI. When that didn't work he suggested not trying IUI again and do IVF. I was hesitant about all the medications, and since he said nothing was wrong with either one of us, we decided to try naturally for a few more months. When still no success we went back and that's when he said- by looking at the original bloodwork- that I had low ovation reserve. We were startled and decided to do IVF as soon as possible. I started meds and went for monitoring two times where he told me everything was good and when my retrieval would be, then on the third he said "nope nothing is happening" when I had an ultrasound. I asked what he meant and he said nothing is happening so the cycle is cancelled and sent me home. My husband scheduled a follow up as we were shocked and confused, and the dr was very casual said who know's why and we can try again without any suggestions for changing the process. So we left and decide to check into other doctors.

The nurses were very knowledgeable. Some were also caring, some were cold.

Very organized nurses and staff, polite front desk personnel. Waits could be very long. Educate yourself before your first visit.

I don't remember specifically but with treatment and medication comebine we probable spent about $1000 out of pocket (I have insurance)

He said multiple isn't recommended.

I think Dr. Grunfeld is a good "doctor" and by that, I mean a scientist. I think he "knows his stuff" and is generally a decent person. My chief complaint is that he was way too overly optimistic when I first started and, as a consequence, I was extremely shocked by what happened and where I am now. When I went to see him about IVF, he made it seem like a fait-accompli that I would have a baby. And it all went well -- until it didn't. I had one embryo from my first round that genetically tested normal and implanted. I miscarried it, and it turned out the fetus had Down's Syndrome. Dr. Grunfeld never communicated to me that PGS was not 100% (I am sure I signed something that said I know). I would have appreciated a little more caution from him and a little more sympathy. When I went in for my follow up appointment, he didn't remember that the fetus had Down's and was not prepared. This was upsetting. He also urged me to another round which I did. I got 10 eggs but no PGS-normal embryos. When I went to see him for my next follow-up appointment, he told me to keep going but I could not at that point as my insurance had run out. I then did an IUI where I really felt like an afterthought to him and the clinic. Overall, it was a disappointing experience though I don't really blame Dr. Grunfeld.

Be careful if he is overly optimistic. IVF is not a fail-safe. Dr. Grunfeld will make it seem like it is.

I'd say on balance, I felt more like a number. The cycle process itself is very "cattle-cally" with little time spent with the patient. This did not bother me so much because I understand they have to see a lot of patients, and it is very much a "numbers" game. When I miscarried my genetically-tested embryo, I felt I could have used a little more sympathy and care from Dr. Grunfeld. He said he was "sorry" and knew it was "disappointing" but at my follow up appointment (after the miscarriage and after the second failed cycle) was all about statistics and why I should keep going, with little thought to what I had been through.

I had the same protocol for both cycles. Gonal-F (c. 150), Menopur (between 2-3 vials), then the trigger. Dr. Grunfeld made no adjustments in between cycles which I understand. Both cycles produced a good amount of eggs -- it was just an egg quality issue given my age.

The nursing staff is overall very responsive and very nice. I have no complaints about them.

Strengths are experience, organization, coordination. Weaknesses are that it can feel a bit impersonal.

There were on occasion very long waits but I don't blame the clinic for that. I think they moved people in and out as efficiently as possible.

My insurance covered most of it though I had to $1,000 per cycle for shipping of the embryos, $750 per cycle for anastheisa, and $3,000 for genetic testing of up to 10 embryos.

I felt I was in the hands of a true expert who is one of the top in his field. I knew about Dr. Grunfeld's excellence and knowledge, yet his humble and down to earth personality made me feel that he was approachable and truly cared about the outcome of our treatments (Not just my payments).

Ask questions and don't be shy!!

Dr Grunfeld always gave me his time and explained everything with patience and care. He responded to emails and calls right away (either personally or via his nurse) He also made me feel like he was disappointed when I was disappointed and he was optimistic when I couldn't be. I felt like he was a cheerleader all along.

My diagnosis was unexplained secondary infertility so we knew we had a good chance of a positive outcome out was just a matter of the right egg and the right sperm at the right time. I got pregnant on a medicated cycle with timed intercourse (had my second baby). When we decided we wanted a third child and the same treatment didn't work Dr. Grunfeld encouraged me to consider IVF and reviewed my chances of success etc. When we finally decided to go ahead with it he discussed our desire to transfer two embryos (he advised not to but told us it was our decision and I'm glad we listened!!). We had our third healthy baby, on our second transfer.

They were very professional, organised, patient and knowledgeable.

Can feel a bit like a factory at monitoring time but that's the nature of the job. I understood they had about 100 women to monitor in a two hour window, they had to move fast.

Well oiled machine. Super efficient.

Insurance covered my medicated cycles and meds. They also covered my ivf meds. I paid for my ivf via a loan from a charitable organization that works with couples trying to conceive. They work with RMA very frequently.

He knew what he was talking about!!

Dr. Grunfeld is very knowledgeable and knows what he is doing. He personalay follows his patients through their treatments and he makes the decisions about medications and timing. Not all doctors do that, even at RMA. We got pregnant very quickly while working with Dr. Grunfeld. Some people say he is not warm and fuzzy and I am sure there are doctors who rate higher on that metric, but he is not cold, and gets results

Dr. Grunfeld is excellent at giving information and explaining your situation. We saw him for a second opinion and just looking through my chart from another clinic, he gave me lots of information the original doctor had not, even though it was the other doctor's chart. He also gave me more information following a physical exam. He explains things well and answers questions well. When we got bad news during one cycle, he was immediately available and followed up quickly and thorouthly. I also felt his information was realistic.

Don't recall

The staff was fantastic. Theyare responsive, helpful, and suportive. They call you back quickly. I once called with basic ally a very emotional question and when I apologized for calling with such, the nurse said this was part of her job and really calmed me down. They also helped with prescriptions and referrals very quickly. Dr. Grunfeld had mentioned seeing an endocrinologist for a thyroid issue. That doctor did not take my insurance. When I asked the coordinator, she told me not to spend out of pocket money for that and helped me find another in network doctor with whom I was very happy.

RMA is very well run and very warm. The doctors have coordinators and nurses who work their patients. I went for screening at the East side location and in Brooklyn. Sometimes screening in Brooklyn could take a long time because there was only one doctor. You could always meet with a nurse during screening too.

Screening was in the morning. I generally tried to get there early and did not wait long. The doctors at the East side location did not spend a lot of time with you but you could see a nurse. In Brooklyn, the doctor would spend more time and would generally give you a lot of information about your exam and answer questions but you could also wait longer.

We were covered by insurance

He’s an expert in his field and has been doing this longer than most. At this point he knows my history and has given me my amazing child so it’s hard to have negative feelings, but I do which he were a little more aware of the psychological and emotional implications of this process.

Don’t expect sensitivity all the time - he is not the most socially aware person.

I feel like he genuinely cares about me, but I also feel like he has a million patients and doesn’t remember all the details of my history (without looking it up) and sometimes changes his advice in unexpected ways - also sometimes difficult to get in touch with

He always respects my wishes for treatment - eg he wanted to do genetic testing for embryos and I didn’t but was ok with my Choice

Almost all of the nurses are very sensitive and communicate Instructions clearly.

Very organized and almost always available - they run like a machine. Everyone able to access our records so no issues seeing different doctors and nurses. Sometimes hard to get in touch via phone - you call and leave a message and person may not call you back until much later in the day at an inconvenient time.

Like could get very long on the weekends but felt it was as efficient as possible. Sometimes I can’t a little after monitoring hours and was never an issue

About $10k for IVF cycle and $5k for meds

I have seen MANY doctors in the office. Dr. Grunfeld has called me a few times to explain next steps. I wish that questions were answered at the time of the visit, however. I find that I have to call into the office or email the nurses with questions. He also isn’t the doctor that does my retrieval, but I know timing does play a factor in this.

Ask a lot of questions and demand to get answers before you leave.

The office moves quick at times. I feel like I have a lot of unanswered questions that requires me to email or call the office at a later point.

We did 3 IUIs due to insurance purposes. Those failed and we moved into IVF. The first round resulted in zero embryos that could be used. We moved into another round of IVF but only had 4 eggs and body was responding well to meds (GonalF- 225 and Menopur 2 vials). We changed to an IUI cycle which ended up failing. I was also diagnosed with endometritis after the retrevial.

Anytime I email the nurses they get back to me with an answer quick and prompt. They are friendly and easy to approach with questions.

Strengths- runs like a well oiled machine. They seem to have all appointments in an appropriate time. You know what to expect when it comes to medications and appointments necessary. Weaknesses- sometimes you feel like a number. Ask lots of questions!

I have insurance. Currently an IVF cycle is approximately $6,200.

No comment here. Haven’t gotten to a transfer yet.

Dr. Grunfeld is very patient and easy going, he very knowledgeable is good about answering any questions you have; however, I felt like I had to be in charge. For example I kept on telling him I was staining between cycles he said it's normal, may just be mid-cycle bleeding. It wasn't until I went to the Brooklyn office to do monitoring where I spoke to Dr. Kudesia and she suggested a saline ultrasound sound, she did it and found polyps. She told me I should have a hysteroscopy to remove them. Even after Dr. Grunfeld saw the ultrasound he was convinced my uterus was fine and that it wasn't anything to worry about. I had to push him to do the hysteroscopy , he did in fact find and remove polyps. I also felt he was very pushy towards doing an IVF. I feel like the saline ultrasound should have been done before my 3 unsuccessful IUI s.

do your research and fight for what you want and believe.

Nurse always answered phone calls took few days to get an answer via email. Nurse was patient and caring

Very organized , sometimes wait times during weekend monitoring hours are long. You need to be on top of them with your paperwork and blood work, they don't always call u back for results u need to call back

I was covered by insurance for IUI and Clomid. I paid $75 for Ovadril. I paid approximately $1400 for hysteroscopy which went towards my $2000 deductable .

When I came in for my consultation I was a little taken aback because he didn’t review all my records. He said he trusted my previous doctor who in the end made big mistakes. However throughout my treatment with him everything went smoothly and he did everything correctly

I came from a previous clinic where I was treated as a number. Here I felt more like a human. A doctor saw me at all times. Billing was so helpful always trying to help me find a way to cover costs. I felt like I was cared for

Took medication days 5-9 and came in for ultrasound day 12. Came back one time after that to make sure I was ready for ovidrel injection which they administered in the office

They were very competent and caring.

Even though it is a big clinic you are still treated like a human and not overlooked. Everything is taken care of for you and they are on top of everything. The financial advisor is amazing and tries to help you save money with insurance and explains everything very clearly

My insurance covered 90 percent of all costs. The costs were very minimal

He was very adamant about a single embryo transfer would not even consider multiple

He has a calming presence and you feel safe in his care. He was very clear with me about the reality of my condition and the odds of getting pregnant. He is kind and enthusiastic and always available by phone.

He is kind but brief. You have to be willing to trust what he says and not want to be coddled.

There are so many patients and you do feel like something in between a number and patient. However, you get a timely response to each email and each call. If you want to see Dr.Grunfeld he will find the time. for me it was much more about efficiency and they have a great system that allows you to go through the process and still maintain your life.

The nurses at RMA have to handle hundreds of patients so you cannot expect too much from them. That being said they are great about calling you back, following up and answering every crazy question and concern. They are experts and really can answer anything.

Monitoring hours at the uptown location are a cattle call- you have no idea how long you will be waiting. The newly opening downtown location is amazing. Its clean, quick and better organized.

Dr. Lawrence Grunfeld was honest and candid about my odds using my own eggs and we tried that route with no success. He didn't seem too eager to adjust the treatment plan for my second attempt with OE but when I insisted he listened and followed suit. He was compassionate when needed and helped me move onto donor eggs when that time came.

Do you research, ask lots of questions and be your own advocate.

The doctor took time to explain the treatment and options clearly.

Gonal 300-450/daily, menopur 1/2 vial/daily & trigger shot.

The nursing staff was efficient with good follow through. Emails were returned quickly.

There are lots of resources due to the size of the clinic. Larger clinics maybe more/less appealing depending on the type of patient and your needs. Doctors are very knowledgable but have very specific opinions about care. Monitoring times were usually efficient.

$30K

Dr. Grunfled will only consider eSET, at least in my case.

He wasn’t a good listener but he’s good at his craft. I trusted he knew what he was doing but it’s a busy clinic so I didn’t feel like I got all the attention I deserved. Luckily I caught a mistake and was able to set back the month of my transfer, ultimately making it a success. It was my doing, not the doctor or office.

Know your body and trust your intuition.

He talked at me and didn’t listen too well. I got pregnant though so he’s the man :)

Primary nurse (Clara) was good and always contacted me. My IVF coordinator was useless.

The place is busy. Always. It made me trust that they knew what they were doing, if for nothing else because they did it so much. But you need to keep up on your own schedule and not trust that they are able to- they’re too busy

I had city insurance which covered 25% co-insurance

Because of my age they would only transfer one embryo (I’m over 40).

Dr. Grunfeld was very detailed oriented, had an obvious expertise in this area and explained on a macro level what was going on and what to expect (the nurses handled the day to day). I understood my diagnosis and what the treatment would be.

Don't expect to get to talk to him whenever you want. At RMA, you see your Dr. occasionally but the nurses are really who you deal with the most.

Since I have PCOS and ovulate late (my cycles around about 3 months long), we started on Clomid and a trigger shot and tried that for a number of cycles. When it didn't work he met with me and we talked about other options, and decided that before anything more invasive we should try another medication - i went on Letrazole and after 2 cycles got a positive pregnancy test.

It's always packed there - get to your appointments and monitoring hours early.

approx $2000

He is extremely competent and knowledgable and genuinely wants his patients to have successful cycles, but he can also be flippant about emotional needs. I also felt that any time I complained about side effects from various medications, there was never a strong attempt to alleviate anything. I was just expected to accept that a range of uncomfortable symptoms come with the territory.

Go to him for sound medical guidance, but rely on someone else for emotional comfort.

The team did seem to care about my outcome, but was also relatively unsympathetic and forgetful about the particulars of my situation (having to undergo fertility treatments to conceive because my husband had cancer.)

They had so many patients that they seemed to have trouble distinguishing patients and histories. There is also a large and varied staff; some nurses are far more compassionate and pleasant than others.

Extremely understanding and very patient, Truthfully caring. When we failed a cycle we literally felt like it affected Dr g personally. Dr g would always return out calls, he would try to schedule our visits so that we didn't have to ruin our weekends. When we failed our first ivf he allowed us to start our second cycle of ivf in August, although he doesn't usually do cycles then.

Share all your fears and hopes (re infertility issues)with Dr g. He'll put u at ease and will respond truthfully without giving false hope or unrealistic expectations albeit with a Healthy dose of hope

Spoke in a language we can understand.

Clomid, iui's and finally ivf when all else failed

Very thorough, gave instructions clearly and in and understansavle fashion

Very efficiently run. Great phlebotomy team. Very large practice and from time to time long waits

very trustworthy - took me seriously - respected me as a single mother - not a lot of small talk but that fit my style - in retrospect wish i had not spent so much time and money on iui and gone straight to ivf - he was efficient and caring

push for ivf sooner

thought he respected me as a person - would have liked to have individualized my plan a bit more

6 iui - 3 with clomid and 3 with injectable 1 ivf

i felt like i wanted more support from the nursing staff than i got

very efficient with getting me in and out for all the lab draws and u/s very good place for a working woman

i felt like 5 embryo transfer was the best option for me - i was not sufficiently prepared though for the fact that the remaining 5 embryos would not be good enough to freeze

He was candid and patient from the very first visit. Gave us realistic assessment. We happened to be very lucky and treatment worked within 8 months of starting it, but he made the process smooth and amazing.

Go to him!

he listened to our concerns. Really treated me as a whole person - from head to toe - taking into account psychological state as well as physical state.

Compassionate, careful. I have bad veins, but they were able to do the bloodwork expertly. Great staff!

efficient, well-oiled machine

He seems smart and interested in taking action. Very methodical.

Do research, ask a lot of questions!

He speaks very quickly and doesn't leave a lot of time to ask questions, but if you are assertive, he responds. Became warmer once he got to know me.

I don't know.

Whitney is the best!

He knows what he is doing and gets results. His bedside manner could be better, but he genuinely believes in what he is doing.

Be prepared to be inundated with information. Make sure to come with your questions prepared because he will talk over you otherwise. That being said, he always gives thorough answers to questions.

The wait time can be long. Arrive early to ensure being seen in a timely manner.

Very blunt. Was eager for me to start IVF right away after two miscarriages (naturally conceived). failed to mention that they were genetically normal. Misled us.

Only go if you want IVF

RMA is a factory. I wouldn't recommend it.

it's a factory with lots of people so don't expect personal care.

Straightforward but also warm.

Try and schedule your monitoring for days that he'll be there.

Dr. Grunfeld was great. There were other doctors in the practice that I didn't like nearly as much.