How was your experience with Michael Kettel at San Diego Fertility Center?
I honestly can’t say anything about him. I can’t even tell you what he looked like, aside from seeing his picture on the website. We loved out of town and traveled for treatment, but even when I went for my transfer, he did not perform my transfer. Another doctor, who was perfectly lovely, did the procedure.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Michael Kettel at San Diego Fertility Center?
Be prepared to stay on top of your own case. He is not very present and seems to rely on his nursing staff to do most, of not all, of his communications.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Michael Kettel at San Diego Fertility Center?
I never met Dr. Kettle. I spoke with him one time on the phone during the year we were patients there. When speaking with his nurse, I felt like I had to consistently remind her of who I was and what I was doing there. I had to ask the same question multiple times before getting an answer.
Describe the protocols Michael Kettel used in your cycles at San Diego Fertility Center and their degree of success.
I used donor eggs, so this question doesn’t really apply to me. I was not given information on how they adjusted and chose the protocol given to my donor.
Describe your experience with your nurse at San Diego Fertility Center. (Assigned nurse: Hillary)
She honestly did not seem very smart. However, I met and dealt with other nurses at the clinic who were fantastic. I think I just got placed with someone who was extremely frustrating to deal with.
Describe your experience with San Diego Fertility Center.
The staff, especially the donor coordinator, were amazing. The donor coordinator is the reason we initially became patients at the clinic and she continued to be excellent to work with throughout our time there. We had a pretty big issue come up regarding our donor, and she personally called us and worked with us to make sure we were okay with the outcome of future cycles.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Michael Kettel at San Diego Fertility Center.
The total cost was approximately $40,000 for one donor egg cycle. That included a $8,000 compensation fee for the donor. The rest was for her medications and egg retrieval, as well as my medications and transfer.
Describe Michael Kettel's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at San Diego Fertility Center.
He left the decision up to us, but it wasn’t ever really a discussion because we were using donor eggs and knew we did not want to risk the possibility of twins.
What specific things went wrong at San Diego Fertility Center?
- Failed to call with results
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at San Diego Fertility Center.
I had to say on top of our nurse to give me information that I needed. I felt like I was tossed around and no one had clear answers to certain questions I had about the donor egg process. I just felt like I was kept out of the loop on a lot of things regarding my cycle. It may have been because we were using a donor and they wanted to ensure the donor’s privacy, but I felt like I was the one paying the money and they weren’t real concerned with my happiness.