How was your experience with Shaun Williams at RMA of Connecticut?
Strengths include a calm, relaxing demeanor. If you're an anxious patient you would do well with him. But he's very impersonal and I felt like just a number. I am a single mom to be and did not feel well taken care of on an emotional level.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Shaun Williams at RMA of Connecticut?
If you need a calm, reassuring demeanor, you'll like him. If you want a doctor that treats you as a person with a life and feelings you might want to go with someone else.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Shaun Williams at RMA of Connecticut?
All talk was robotic and clinical. Have seen him for over a year and don't think he even knows what I do professionally. Whereas another doctor knew asked and learned more about me during one monitoring session
Describe the protocols Shaun Williams used in your cycles at RMA of Connecticut and their degree of success.
No "infertility" issues per say. Just a single female that wants a baby. So started with a clomid/trigger IUI. 2nd IUI clomid was upped and follistim added. Resulted in a chemical pregnancy. 3rd IUI was follistim and trigger and was negative. Just had my first egg retrieval for IVF #1 and used follistim, menopur, ganirelix and hCG trigger. Resulted in 20 eggs retrieved.
Describe your experience with your nurse at RMA of Connecticut. (Assigned nurse: Linda)
My primary nurse was very knowledgeable and organized. But lacked in tenderness and compassion. The blood draw nurses were sweet. And the nurses in the egg retrieval section were amazing!!
Describe your experience with RMA of Connecticut.
Strengths are that it is a top of the line clinic with it's cleanliness, technology, and capabilities. They also focus on the whole body and offer yoga, acupuncture, and support groups! Weaknesses are with the lack of compassion in some of the staff. I know they do this for a living but I think it's critical for them to remember the patients they are dealing with. Also would say communication is sometimes lacking. If I didn't do research and ask a million questions there are some things that would've never been revealed. I'm also unhappy and disheartened that there was also a mistake when information that I relayed to a doctor was put into the wrong patient's file. This ultimately caused the lab to not freeze the last bit of donor sperm that I had.
Describe your experience with your monitoring appointments at RMA of Connecticut.
They were pretty organized as long as you got there at 7 am on the dot. The closest office is about 30 minutes away and in order to get seen and get out and get to work on time I needed to be there the minute they opened.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Shaun Williams at RMA of Connecticut.
After 3 IUIs using donor sperm I've charged about $7,000 for sperm, deductibles, and meds.
Describe Shaun Williams's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at RMA of Connecticut.
Doctor originally recommended transferring 2 due to my age (38). After retrieval, he stated that my embryo development was above average for someone my age and he now recommends 1. So I'm confused and overwhelmed at the decision.
What specific things went wrong at RMA of Connecticut?
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at RMA of Connecticut.
As a single mom to be I feel like there are definitely things that should've been discussed. As I'm entering my first IVF cycle with donor sperm, it hit me 2 days before my retrieval that I would like to also freeze eggs (in addition to embryos) if I have a good enough response. This was never recommended by my doctor! Thank goodness I was able to relay my desire in time and they were able to adjust the plans. Additionally, I mentioned several times how anxious I was because I only have 2 lifetime IVS and literally bought the last vial for my donor. He is no longer donating. I mentioned it again during one of my monitoring sessions with a different doctor. He said they could separate the vial and freeze the extra. Again, I didn't know this was an option! I said of course I'd like to do that. The information was not put in my chart; only verbally discussed with my doctor. My doctor then put those notes into the wrong patient's file. After my egg retrieval, the extra sperm was not refrozen.