How was your experience with Martin Freedman at RMA of Philadelphia?
In person, Dr. Freedman is great, answers your questions, and is very calming. However, as questions started to arise, it began to feel as though more information should have been shared and more options discussed. The communication was really our biggest issue, as we never really understood why certain treatments were being administered or what more could have been done.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Martin Freedman at RMA of Philadelphia?
Do your research beforehand and have questions prepared.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Martin Freedman at RMA of Philadelphia?
At RMA, you are not always treated by the same doctor, although Freedman generally "oversaw" each cycle. Still, he often forgot how many cycles we'd done or which procedures we'd done. We never discussed IUI in detail at first but got the call to "come in for insemination." It felt like there was a lot missing in terms of communication.
Describe the protocols Martin Freedman used in your cycles at RMA of Philadelphia and their degree of success.
We began with Clomid only for a cycle. With the 2nd cycle, IUI was proposed by a nurse over the phone without any explanation or prior conversation. This was alarming since this was our first RE and we had no idea what to expect. We did Letrozole only for the next cycle, then 4 IUIs with Letrozole. On the last IUI, Dr. Freedman added progesterone (without any explanation, but again we didn't know any better amd just went with it). We got pregnant with this last IUI, but miscarried at 7 weeks with an empty gestational sac. I had a D&C, then once my levels returned to normal, we decided to take a break from ttc. Eventually, we decided to go with a new RE who might be more aggressive.
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at RMA of Philadelphia.
Nurses were average. They didn't really provide any extra information and at times were even too sympathetic. By this I mean that they made us feel terrible coming in after our miscarriage because their demeanor was a little too "sad" rather than helping us to be optimistic (making sad faces, saying "I'm so sorry" repeatedly).
Describe your experience with RMA of Philadelphia.
We really felt like a number there. This is something we've realized more as time goes on, especially with our current RE who is so specific and personal. A strength would be that overall,RMA is very successful. However, this is only true if you have an easily fixable issue. Friends have gotten pregnant there within only a few cycles. But with us, they seemed to just "go through the motions," and when the typical methods didn't work, they went right to IVF as though it was no big deal. Everything seemed "scripted" in a way, without really trying to look for an issue and individualize our care.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Martin Freedman at RMA of Philadelphia.
We paid a copay each time except for blood only. Billing was the biggest disaster at RMA. we received many bills for hundreds of dollars for procedures that were covered by insurance. I would speak to someone in billing who would tell me they'd "write it off" ( not correct it), only to receive the same bill again. We ultimately left because the billing issues became so stressful. In the end, I resorted to crying to billing personnel on the phone saying that I was forced to leave and figure out something with another clinic because we couldn't continue to accrue unnecessary charges if we weren't even seeing results. The woman's response was to offer a 3 way call with my insurance company to "figure something out." They refused to look into the issue. Later, we received more bills months after leaving... for my D&C no less, which was a painful reminder. Also the bills were in my husband's name this time, for "tramsvaginal ultrasounds." He called and they again "wrote it off."
Describe Martin Freedman's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at RMA of Philadelphia.
No comment
What specific things went wrong at RMA of Philadelphia?
- Failed to call with results
- Failed to inform you of changes in protocol
- Failed to convey critical information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at RMA of Philadelphia.
The IUI was not discussed with us beforehand. We had a nurse call us to "come in for insemination" when we'd been given no explanation about what that meant or why it was being proposed.