How was your experience with Ruth Lathi at Stanford University?
As I mentioned earlier, Dr. Lathi is not warn and fuzzy, but with that said, she is very compassionate. She talks through her line of thinking in a very palatable/understandable way, she addresses all of my concerns in a thoughtful manner, and she really blew me away when I learned I was about to miscarry for the third time. There was no sense of being hurried along. She sat with me, listened to all of my sadness and fear, and really helped me through the moment, and the “what next.”
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Ruth Lathi at Stanford University?
Dr. Lathi knows her stuff. If you are someone who needs a lot of emotional coddling, she may not be the doctor for you. If you are looking for someone who can explain the ins and out, where’s and whyfores of the process, a doctor who will be honest with you both clinically and emotionally, then she is a great choice. I think she’s also a great choice for medical professionals undergoing the fertility journey.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Ruth Lathi at Stanford University?
Dr. Lathi is definitely not the most warm and fuzzy doctor that I have seen at Stanford, and I’ve seen a lot of doctors there. I am in the medical field, and what I appreciate most is her candor, her willingness to talk through her thought process, citing current research, and then pausing to recognize that there is more to the fertility journey than numbers and logic. I recently experienced my third miscarriage, first discovered as an empty sac on ultrasound with her. She was so gentle, kind and compassionate. She really took the time to help me through the moment, to encourage me to be gentle with myself, and to be realistic, but never give up hope. I so appreciated her way of being with me. For a doctor that I never really associated with “warm and fuzzy,” she was really really wonderful when I needed her to be.
Describe the protocols Ruth Lathi used in your cycles at Stanford University and their degree of success.
I never thought I would do IVF. I’m a “choice mom” (meaning I’m single and used donor sperm to conceive my son), and had very little difficulty the first time around. I conceived him on my 3rd IUI when I was 39 years old. The second time around, I’ve had three miscarriages and three doctors, and now, at 43, I’m considering IVF. We went from natural (0 BFPs), to Letrazole (2 BFPs, 2 miscarriages), to follistim (1 BFP, 1 miscarriage) all with IUI. Dr. Lathi is now helping me to decide whether I will do IVF, or continue with Follistim and IUI.
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at Stanford University.
Each doctor at Stanford is assigned a team of med techs who do the rooming and set up for ultrasound. Their nurses do much of the phone work, at least, when you are undergoing IUI. I suspect you see the nurses in person when you’re undergoing IVF a little more frequently. They are always polite, courteous, and empathetic.
Describe your experience with Stanford University.
I’ve been really happy with Stanford overall. I will say that if you are looking to have all of your care performed by the same physician, this may not be the clinic for you. There are a team of doctors here, and they all work together, so while you see your primary doctor as often as possible, it isn’t always your doctor performing insemination or ultrasound if they are not on duty when you require your specific treatment or intervention
Describe the costs associated with your care under Ruth Lathi at Stanford University.
My insurance doesn’t cover anything. About $345 per ultrasound. $600 per IUI. IVF with PGD testing is about 25K
What specific things went wrong at Stanford University?
Describe the specific things that went wrong at Stanford University.
Last year I had the lab accidentally send a full vial of donor sperm back to the sperm bank, and discovered this two days before IUI. The clinic remedied the problem immediately by calling the sperm bank and paying to have them overnight the vial.