2019 - 2020, Unknown Success
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Dr. Noel has a warm manner during consultations, offers good explanations and recommendations, while treating me like an intelligent partner. I'm not yet sure if she is adapting her treatment recommendations appropriately for me to get results, as I am still in the midst of treatment. Her coordinating staff and nurses, however, were always very rushed, and created additional stress in the process as they often seemed more focused on checking everything off their list than supporting me or providing information to me through the process.
I chose UCSF in large part because their donor egg program offered options that met my criteria - including some open donors (open to varying degrees to future contact with a child), and they seemed to follow relatively strong ethical practices in terms of the donor recruitment and screening. I was also attracted to their relatively strong outcomes data, and their research-based orientation. Their key weakness for me has been the support staff.
How was your experience with Martha Noel at UCSF?
Dr. Noel seemed to pay close attention to my case, read my history thoroughly before my first visit, reviewed donor history in depth, and took the time to answer my many questions. She seemed to be well-informed about the latest research and thoughtful about how it applied to me. However, we have encountered some unexpected challenges in my case and it's too early to say whether she will be able to adapt her approach to those to get a successful pregnancy.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Martha Noel at UCSF?
Ask to be in touch with her by email directly, as her coordinating staff is fairly unhelpful, and then reach out to her sparingly with key medical questions. She is responsive by email, but very briefly, so use that channel only to get information on a clear, specific question.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Martha Noel at UCSF?
Dr. Noel has a warm manner during consultations, offers good explanations and recommendations, while treating me like an intelligent partner. I'm not yet sure if she is adapting her treatment recommendations appropriately for me to get results, as I am still in the midst of treatment. Her coordinating staff and nurses, however, were always very rushed, and created additional stress in the process as they often seemed more focused on checking everything off their list than supporting me or providing information to me through the process.
Describe the protocols Martha Noel used in your cycles at UCSF and their degree of success.
Standard embryo transfer protocol: birth control pill for timing, Lupron, estradiol patches, and progesterone in oil shots in preparation for the transfer, with Medrol for a few days just before the transfer and Valium day of transfer. I responded well to the standard protocol, other than strong mood reactions to the birth control pill.
UCSF's drug program is significantly discounted from other clinics.
Describe your experience with your nurse at UCSF. (Assigned nurse: Olga)
Olga, the nurse I worked with for two cycles, was extremely rushed every single time I spoke with her, and I grew to dread calls with her as I was always stressed after getting off of them. She shared unnecessary information that created additional stress, like telling me that there was going to be a lot of competition for transfer appointments in a certain timeframe. She also sometimes gave unclear instructions and was defensive about it when I asked for clarification on details (i.e. telling me to use estrogen patches at a certain time of day, and then when I asked a related question, telling me that she never told me that and giving a long explanation for how I couldn't possibly have heard what I heard). This same issue happened on both cycles, and I was careful in taking notes from our calls, so it was extremely frustrating to both have poor information and to then have her argue with me when I asked a non-confrontational question.
Unlike a previous experience at another clinic, I never felt actual emotional support from the nursing staff at UCSF. When calling with a negative pregnancy test result, they clearly have been trained to say some of the right things, but it felt like a script. When I didn't want to schedule an embryo transfer for the day before one of my biggest work days of the year, and was feeling pressured by the nurse, she didn't show any understanding of my wanting to take my work commitments into consideration and by the end of the call, I was crying, frustrated, and anxious about the choices I'd made very quickly about scheduling such an important procedure.
Thuy, Dr. Noel's coordinator, is a bit scattered and required a lot of follow-up to get my labs straight, as she would request labs she had received again, and fail to notice other missing labs. She also often seemed rushed, but was kind and responsive.
Describe your experience with UCSF.
I chose UCSF in large part because their donor egg program offered options that met my criteria - including some open donors (open to varying degrees to future contact with a child), and they seemed to follow relatively strong ethical practices in terms of the donor recruitment and screening.
I was also attracted to their relatively strong outcomes data, and their research-based orientation.
Their key weakness for me has been the support staff.
Describe Martha Noel's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at UCSF.
Strong preference for eSET but would have considered multiple embryo transfer after multiple unsuccessful cycles.
What specific things went wrong at UCSF?
- Lost paperwork
- Lost appointments
- Provided conflicting information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at UCSF.
I had trouble getting all of my initial diagnostic lab results into my records.
I had one phone appointment incorrectly cancelled.
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