Michael Cho
University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)
Available Lines of Communication
Nurse email
Direct line to nurse
Not available by personal cell phone
Medical SchoolU. of Pittsburgh
ResidencyCase Western
FellowshipUSC
Hoboken
79 Hudson Street 102 LL
Hoboken, NJ 07030
(888) 770-9080
3 assessments
6
6
Age
35 - 36
Treated
2016 - 2017
Success with this Doc
No
Treatment
IVF
Diagnosis
Endometriosis
6
6
Strength: He [Dr. Michael Cho] seemed very confident of what he was doing. He was very re-assuring which made me feel good. Weakness: As a patient I did not have clear idea of what IVF process or exactly protocols were being followed. My idea was a little vague and i just solely trusted him...He adjusted the first cycle mid-way to give me the injections Gonal-f and Menopaur in my arms, instead of my belly. He felt i had scar tissues in my belly due to an endometrosis surgery I had, which prevented absorption of the medicines. After switching to arm/shoulder area, it actually improved my egg growth rate. However the eggs reached 3-day cycle, but were not viable on day 5. No transfers happened
10,000 for IVF cycle which included egg retrieval and egg transfer [at University Reproductive Associates]...The receptionists were good and reminded me of my appointments. The wait time was not too much, so that was good too. However, no one provided very clear picture of the egg monitoring. I had to ask about how many eggs, how much estradiol etc.. and hardly got proper details. That part i felt can be improved. It just adds to the stress if you don't understand how well or bad your cycle is going.
Age
35 - 36
Treated
2016 - 2017
Success with this Doc
No
Race
East Asian
Income
—
Occupation
Engineer
Order & Number of Docs Seen
1 Doc Seen
Treatment
IVF
Diagnosis
Endometriosis
6
6
How was your experience with Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
Strength: He seemed very confident of what he was doing. He was very re-assuring which made me feel good.
Weakness: As a patient I did not have clear idea of what IVF process or exactly protocols were being followed. My idea was a little vague and i just solely trusted him.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
Ask a lot of questions proactively.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
He did explain the process and results, but I had to ask a lot of questions to get a clear idea. I felt it would have helped to get little more time and attention from him. Sometimes as patients we don't even know what questions to ask. He did answer any question i asked though.
Describe the protocols Michael Cho used in your cycles at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School) and their degree of success.
I had 2 IVF cycles with him.
He adjusted the first cycle mid-way to give me the injections Gonal-f and Menopaur in my arms, instead of my belly. He felt i had scar tissues in my belly due to an endometrosis surgery I had, which prevented absorption of the medicines. After switching to arm/shoulder area, it actually improved my egg growth rate. However the eggs reached 3-day cycle, but were not viable on day 5. No transfers happened.
For my 2nd cycle he used Follistim and menopeur and increased dosage compared to last cycle. The eggs grew faster this time, and this time he was able to transfer 2 embryos. However, I got a negative test.
Describe your experience with your nurse at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School). (Assigned nurse: Melissa)
Some nurses were good but some were not. They poked me so many times for blood and gave me blue/black bruises so many times. At the end my left hand vein was lost. The care coordinators sometimes lost or forgot to mention critical details like I had only one ovary. My other ovary was removed during my endometrosis surgery. During monitoring by other doctors, they poked me so many times for so long before realizing something was wrong and I had to tell them that i have only one ovary, so checking for the 2nd ovary will not give results.
Describe your experience with University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
The receptionists were good and reminded me of my appointments.
The wait time was not too much, so that was good too.
However, no one provided very clear picture of the egg monitoring. I had to ask about how many eggs, how much estradiol etc.. and hardly got proper details. That part i felt can be improved. It just adds to the stress if you don't understand how well or bad your cycle is going.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
10,000 for IVF cycle which included egg retrieval and egg transfer; 800 additional for anasthesia during egg retrieval. 10,000 for medicines. Additional costs were incurred for doctor's visit and various diagnostic tests.
Describe Michael Cho's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
He did multiple transfer to increase my chances of success which i liked. However, the preg test was negative.
What specific things went wrong at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
- Failed to convey critical information
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5
2
Age
42
Treated
2019
Success with this Doc
No
Treatment
3 IUI, 3 IVF
Diagnosis
Uterine Fibroids, Unexplained
5
2
Dr Cho is a very nice doctor. I feel that the clinic restricted his ability to give more personalized care so he had no choice but to treat me like any other patient. He was always willing to listen to my ideas. Sometimes he seemed stumped.... Antagonist protocol every time. Estrogen was managed up to 3000 and my protocol was altered based on my estrogen. I am not sure that was the best idea.
URA treats by consensus. I feel that their sweet spot is women up to 35 years old. I’m older and probably could have used more personalized care. My protocol was “standard” and repeated even though we weren’t getting better results. Pretty frustrating.... They [nurses] were average. Sometimes forgot meds or instructions but mostly average. They really didn’t know the “why” behind protocols but not sure if they were supposed to.
Age
42
Treated
2019
Success with this Doc
No
Race
Black or African-American
Income
—
Occupation
Accountant
Order & Number of Docs Seen
1 Doc Seen
Treatment
3 IUI, 3 IVF
Diagnosis
Uterine Fibroids, Unexplained
5
2
How was your experience with Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
Dr Cho is a very nice doctor. I feel that the clinic restricted his ability to give more personalized care so he had no choice but to treat me like any other patient. He was always willing to listen to my ideas. Sometimes he seemed stumped.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
He tries his best but if you have unexplained infertility he may not know what to do.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
URA treats by consensus. I feel that their sweet spot is women up to 35 years old. I’m older and probably could have used more personalized care. My protocol was “standard” and repeated even though we weren’t getting better results. Pretty frustrating.
Describe the protocols Michael Cho used in your cycles at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School) and their degree of success.
Antagonist protocol every time. Estrogen was managed up to 3000 and my protocol was altered based on my estrogen. I am not sure that was the best idea.
Describe your experience with your nurse at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School). (Assigned nurse: Melissa / Jackie)
They were average. Sometimes forgot meds or instructions but mostly average. They really didn’t know the “why” behind protocols but not sure if they were supposed to.
Describe your experience with University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
Strength: a long history in fertility, university affiliated and convenient.
Cons: very conservative and risk adverse. Patients are given standard protocols and every protocol is decided by consensus. So if you need more specialized care it’s hard to get it from this group.
Describe your experience with your monitoring appointments at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
Cattle call for sure. To be seen early you have to be in line by 6:30
Describe the costs associated with your care under Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
I had some insurance and I was also self pay when all my insurance ran out.
Describe Michael Cho's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
Dr. Cho prefers single transfers of euploid embryos. I’m not against this protocol so I didn’t mind.
What specific things went wrong at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
- Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy
- Provided conflicting information
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8
10
Age
32 - 33
Treated
2012 - 2013
Success with this Doc
Yes
Treatment
3 IUI, 1 IVF
Diagnosis
—
8
10
[Dr. Michael Cho] is a Great communicator and very knowledgeable about his field of medicine while being sensitive to the plight of infertility at the same time. I never felt like a number to him which is more than I could say about a lot of doctors, especially in this field knowing how important their work is...try to trust the process without stressing yourself out and he will guide you through it...I was in constant contact with a nurse who checked my progress every step of the way.
They [nurses at University Reproductive Associates] were very caring and sympathetic when we experienced our negative pregnancy test and celebrated with us when we finally got the +...This is a strange thing to consider a strength but I like the fact that it wasn’t “flashy” so you knew your money wasn’t going to upgrading the waiting room seating or something like that and only to the important stuff in the road to getting you pregnant
Age
32 - 33
Treated
2012 - 2013
Success with this Doc
Yes
Race
European
Income
$50K - $99K
Occupation
—
Order & Number of Docs Seen
2nd of 2 Docs
Treatment
3 IUI, 1 IVF
Diagnosis
—
8
10
How was your experience with Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
Dr. Cho is a Great communicator and very knowledgeable about his field of medicine while being sensitive to the plight of infertility at the same time.
I never felt like a number to him which is more than I could say about a lot of doctors, especially in this field knowing how important their work is.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
Be patient and follow instructions and try to trust the process without stressing yourself out and he will guide you through it.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Michael Cho at University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School)?
I was in constant contact with a nurse who checked my progress every step of the way. She made me feel like she had no other patients , which of course she did!
Describe your experience with the nursing staff.
They were very caring and sympathetic when we experienced our negative pregnancy test and celebrated with us when we finally got the +
Describe your experience with University Reproductive Associates (New Jersey Medical School).
This is a strange thing to consider a strength but I like the fact that it wasn’t “flashy” so you knew your money wasn’t going to upgrading the waiting room seating or something like that and only to the important stuff in the road to getting you pregnant
- Read less
Verified
This patient has provided documentation of treatment at this clinic.