Miguel Damien

I love Dr. Damien. I think he’s the best fertility doctor but because of that he’s very busy so he can seem rushed sometimes. He has been a fertility doctor for decades and nothing can replace experience which is another reason why I believe he is so good. He seems to really care about his patients and when he focuses on your case he really individualizes your care.

He can be off putting at times so be prepared for that.

When I lost my first baby, Dr. Damien hugged me and told me we’d get this to work. My care was individualized before I got pregnant with my daughter. This time I’m doing ivf and I feel kind of like a number only because it seems like he’s so busy. But I still think he’s the best fertility doctor.

The first time I saw Dr. Damien he gave me several options starting with iui to ivf. I was hesitant to do invasive procedures so I did several iui’s that failed, some were natural cycles and others were with clomid. I got pregnant on a natural iui cycle but lost that baby. Dr. Damien felt that injectables would produce a pregnancy but I was hesitant and he was fine with letting me decide on what to do. After that I did an iui with clomid which failed and then an iui with injectables. The iui with injectables resulted in my daughter. Trying to have baby #2 I had a laporascopy because during my c section with my daughter the dr. Noted issues with my right Fallopian tube. Dr. Damien suggested a laporscopy or start with iui & injectables. Since he had gained my trust with baby #1 I asked him what he suggested & he said laporascopy. I’m glad I got it because I found out that I didn’t have a right Fallopian tube, my right ovary was adhesed to the back of my uterus & my left Fallopian tube was completely blocked. Dr. Damien informed me that we could do 2 iui with injections but he wasn’t sure if my 1 tube was going to work probably. After surgery I started with an iui with injections which was unsuccessful. So I opted to go to ivf. My first cycle was not successful, we had no embryos. Dr Damien was very apologetic and is adjusting my next protocol.

Most are nice but 1 is a little less compassionate.

Strengths- dr Damien is the best fertility doctor in my opinion. He is straight forward with you which is off putting for some. Weaknesses - he’s so busy because he’s so good. There can be long wait times & he is rushed with you sometimes.

Dr. Damien is extremely knowledgeable and caring. He pays attention to detail, and helps the patient through one step at a time without overwhelming. I was in extremely good hands with Dr. Damien. His professional skill and knowledge make him one of the most trusted people in my life. Highly recommended.

Go in with an open mind and ask questions. He gives you options, but crafts a recommended personal care plan for you that is based on all the evidence of your situation even though he won't burden you with all the details unless you ask for them.

The team was very proactive and thorough. Every visit, I was met with caring and concern.

For each of my transfers, my hormone therapy was different and achieved the desired results to get me to transfer. I was in full-blown menopause when I visited him for the first time, yet I had not started my family. After a successful pregnancy under his care, I returned with the hopes for another child. I was aging and my system needed different tactics to be ready. His adjustments to my protocols in each subsequent try resulted in pregnancy twice. The cohort of donor eggs I was using for the two transfers after my successful pregnancy were not viable. He did everything right. The second miscarriage resulted in a fetal matter testing and it was found that the embryo would not survive. If I wasn't so strapped for funds from those two procedures and the failed donor eggs, I would have tried again. Just cannot afford it especially since I'm down $20,000 already from the two failed pregnancies. I aged out of insurance coverage for the IVF portion and now cannot afford to try for another child.

Caring and efficient.

The staff is kind and the waiting experience is comfortable. Every time I called with a question or concern, it was addressed with a return call the same or next day. The clinic is a well-oiled machine. However, the wait time for additional ultrasounds after complications can be a bit long due to the fact that the doctor also has surgery on certain days. When making such appointments the nature of the schedule is clearly communicated to the patient. It appears the clinic has a schedule for every anticipated appointment for a routine protocol and has just a little wiggle room for additional visits (like when an additional ultrasound is necessary or a miscarriage is imminent and extra examinations are needed). Overall, one needs to be understanding when complications arise. Not every case will need additional visits.

$2,700 transfer $1,800 ICSI and assisted hatching Co-pay for visits and Bloodwork From an outside clinic, I used frozen donor eggs at $11,000/6 eggs $200-400 embryo storage

My doctor recommends two embryos in transfer, whenever possible, but no more.

Dr. Damien is very thorough and explains everything. If you don't understand anything, ask questions right away and he will take the time to answer them. Despite trying to absorb a whirlwind of information at our first consultation, he was patient with me understanding his treatment plan for us. Even though we have only been in treatment with him since August 2016, we feel he is taking a more aggressive approach with our treatments, which is something we are very grateful for.

If you don't understand something, don't be afraid to ask questions. Be honest with your medical history.

When we went through our miscarriage, we never once felt like we were treated as though it was something "common". He has been caring and empathetic throughout our treatments.

1 round of Clomid 50mg CD 5-9 failed 1 round of Clomid 50mg CD 5-9 successful in conception but ended in incomplete miscarriage. Needed Methotrexate to complete miscarriage. Took 4 months off due to Methotrexate, further testing and surgery for Endometriosis. IUI-1 round of Clomid 50mg CD 5-9 with 250mcg Ovidrel injection failed 1 round of Clomid 50mg CD 5-9 failed IUI-1 round of Clomid 50mg CD 5-9 with 250mcg Ovidrel injection (pending)

The nursing staff has been helpful during our treatments but we had some instances of miscommunication when trying to get test results (blood work, genetic testing, semen analysis). Beta blood work results were always given within hours.

Staff is always friendly, great with ordering medications that have to be ordered from pharmacies specizing in fertility meds, and responsive to phone calls that I have made to them. The nurse's line always goes to voicemail but there's been times where I needed to speak to a nurse right away so I went through the operator and a nurse was put on the phone for me. We only had one instance of miscommunication amongst nursing staff, which was over a timespan of 2 months but it was resolved and we were able to move ahead. Definitely follow-up with tests results if you don't hear from them.

We are covered by my insurance. We just pay a copay.

We have not completed embryo transfers yet.

He was present at every visit & reviewed everything I needed to know very carefully.

Be honest with him...he's very receptive & eager to help. Don't be afraid to ask any questions, because it will only help him give you the best treatment. Follow all directions carefully...he's very structured & I think his methods helped me achieve great results.

He spends so much time with you throughout the process. He has the best bedside manner of any doctor I've been treated by. He's just an amazing person!

I'm unsure of medication names...I went through 2 cycles of injections for egg retrieval. The 1st retrieval didn't yield enough eggs...very surprisingly because I have PCOS. He increased dosages on certain meds for the 2nd round, which made it successful. My egg reserve is low, but the quality is good, so he expressed that he felt confident that even though the number was low, there was still lots of hope for a pregnancy.

I wasn't too happy with my care coordinator for most of the experience. I didn't want to say anything & cause trouble for her. I was finally upset enough one day & spoke with Dr. Damien. Things seemed to be much better with her for the most part after that. The coordinator calls with test results, medication info, follow up plans. She always followed protocol, but was a little difficult about doing more than expected/answering questions.

I was beyond happy with the clinic, so it's hard to say there were weaknesses.

Several thousand

He is a very caring and understanding person With both sympathy and empathy for me and my husband while he is trying to get us our rainbow baby from a previous (before him) miscarriage ...he is very patient with us while he explains any and all questions we have had

Just listen and have faith

He saw me for me and not like a dollar sign and really wants to get us pregnant and he sees that that is possible....I was diagnosed with pcos but not by him

From what I can remember everything was step-by-step and broken down that way my husband and I could understand everything that we needed to do

All of them are really great and helpful especially Jamie she is been the one that have been able to ask any and all my questions to and is able to answer them with patience and understanding

The doctor's office as a whole is great individually is even better everybody is so helpful nice and understanding. Whenever I need to get in touch with a nurse I get a call within the day I need time I have a question and somebody doesn't know the answer they've let me know that they don't know the answer I don't they get me the person that does know the answer with in the day

Not sure

Friendly, great bedside manners, extremely intelligent. He lets you know exactly what’s going on and what the best route is for your treatment. He shows compassion and talks to you like your a normal human being. Very straightforward and honest.

Trust him and his decisions.

With all the patients he sees throughout the day, he makes it a point to get to know you. He remembers small but important details. Takes the time to answer any questions and address and concerns

Compassionate, friendly, always makes you feel welcomed. Addresss any questions or concerns in a timely manner. The girls at shrewsbury are wonderful

Everyone takes their time, your not just a number to them. They actually get to know you. The clinic itself is very spa like. Clean, modern and comfortable. All the retrieval’s and transfers are done in the office

Medication, pgs testing & freezing embryos

It was a long time ago. He was pleasant enough. My mom was not crazy about him but I don't remember why. Maybe it was his bedside manner she didn't like but I thought it was fine. As a patient I was comfortable. He ordered a lot of tests and they made sense and I learned that I had to have a donor that did not carry the cystic fibrosis gene.

Take good notes

He talked about the most aggressive and the least aggressive ways to have a baby. He was pushing more aggressive ways before trying the least aggressive at first.

I had something that cleared my tubes by another doctor. Dr. Damien removed a fibroid. We did injections of something that other people weren't using but I forget what.

Dr. Damien is in a new space from the one that I went to so I can't comment. It was clean and comfortable.

I do not remember but the injections were more costly at first than I thought. When I called and cried to them, they arranged for another pharmacy at a much lower cost that I could afford to send me what I needed.

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