How was your experience with Max Ezzati at Palo Alto Medical Foundation?
Dr. Ezzati is warm and capable, and we've been very happy with him. We haven't always been able to see him, but the clinic tries hard to schedule me with him as often as possible, and always for surgical procedures. He usually does not respond to emails personally, but his nurses respond from his account quickly and satisfactorily. He is clearly invested in our success without crossing any boundaries or making any promises (he has always been very professional). We have always felt that we were in very good hands, understood our treatment plans ,and were able to ask questions.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Max Ezzati at Palo Alto Medical Foundation?
He is in different offices on different days, so be prepared to be flexible if you need to see him on a certain day (you may need to drive to an office farther away from you) or in a certain location (you may need to wait a week or two for an appointment).
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Max Ezzati at Palo Alto Medical Foundation?
Doctor Ezzati's clinic is efficient and I often saw different physicians, but it meant that appointments were easy to schedule and moved quickly. I don't mind feeling "like a number" in exchange for efficient service and clear instructions. Our consultations with Dr. Ezzati were personal and valuable, and didn't feel rushed. He remembers our daughter's name and age when we see him now (trying for our second child), and is reassuring and available for questions.
Describe the protocols Max Ezzati used in your cycles at Palo Alto Medical Foundation and their degree of success.
We did a stimulation and egg retrieval in 2016. I don't remember the details of the protocol, but I do remember that he introduced a growth hormone partway through that helped a number of additional follicles develop. He noted that if we ever did another stimulation, he would include this from the start. He gave us a very good explanation of PGS and ICSI, and ultimately we decided to do both. Our daughter was born the next year after an FET, and we are now preparing for our third FET (our second - last month - was not successful).
Describe your experience with your nurse at Palo Alto Medical Foundation. (Assigned nurse: Justine Lawas)
Justine is reliable (she always calls when she says she will), clear (our medication schedule is easy to understand and she spends time reviewing it with us), and efficient. She isn't particularly warm or compassionate, but I haven't minded that.
Describe your experience with Palo Alto Medical Foundation.
The number of locations is both a strength and a weakness - they provide flexibility, but if one location is preferred (as it was for us), the number of available appointments are limited. The on-site labs are convenient and I never had to wait long for blood work. The Fremont office is co-located with an OB/GYN office, and it can be difficult sitting in a waiting room with pregnant women, so I tended to avoid scheduling appointments at that office. Front desk staff are all nice and helpful.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Max Ezzati at Palo Alto Medical Foundation.
$4500 for FET
$20000 for IVF stimulation, retrieval, ICSI, and PGS
Medications additional
Describe Max Ezzati's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at Palo Alto Medical Foundation.
Our doctor's preference - and ours - was to transfer a single embryo, given that we had undiagnosed infertility, and had never experienced any pregnancy loss or complications.
What specific things went wrong at Palo Alto Medical Foundation?
- Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy
- Provided conflicting information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at Palo Alto Medical Foundation.
Neither were huge problems: During a recent cycle, there was a discrepancy in my medication schedule on two different documents (which day to drop from 6mg of Estrace to 2mg). I wrote to my coordinator - on a weekend - and she wrote back to clarify within two hours. We did back-to-back FETs and needed to reorder some medications for the second cycle, but others we had leftover from the first. It wasn't clear to us when these would be called in for us to pick-up, and when we went to the pharmacy, the order hadn't been placed and we had to wait.