Verified
This patient has provided documentation of treatment at this clinic.
2015 - 2021, Unsuccessful
Review of
He [Dr. Nakajima] kept forgetting details about my case. I had to remind him multiple times that I was going for embryo freezing and not immediate pregnancy. He kept mis-communicating with his team, he would always run late for his appointments and kept forgetting to update notes. I had to chase him and his team of nurses to keep track of what next to do....
The nursing staff [at Stanford University] kept rotating and every time I had to re-explain! There is simply no co-ordination. During my egg retrieval surgery, the nurses did not know of my pre-existing condition of endometriosis. The nurses inserted the IV incorrectly which led to anesthesia pooling in my arm, instead of my vein...Lack of compassion...Dismissive nurse who seemed to be unaware of my endometriosis history...
How was your experience with Steven Nakajima at Stanford University?
Dr Steven Nakajima, needs to remember that his patients undergo hormonal fluctuations, expenses and trust in him. During an IVF cycle, many critical decisions need to be taken - including when to trigger - which make the trip worth it or not. He needs to be more responsive and treat the patients paying his bills as humans, not just numbers.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Steven Nakajima at Stanford University?
Avoid him. He kept forgetting details about my case. I had to remind him multiple times that I was going for embryo freezing and not immediate pregnancy. He kept mis-communicating with his team, he would always run late for his appointments and kept forgetting to update notes. I had to chase him and his team of nurses to keep track of what next to do.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Steven Nakajima at Stanford University?
During my 1st cycle, just 1 day before my treatment were to start, his team sent an e-message to inform me that he's going on a sabbatical. After being his patient for about 5+ years before this due to endometriosis, he did not bother to call to inform me. This was simply callousness on his part
During my 2nd cycle, when I repeatedly re-arranged my schedule to fit his office schedule, making sure he would be the one reviewing and taking crucial decisions like when to trigger, he simply chose to ignore my case - relying on someone else at Stanford. 11 eggs were extracted, out of which only 2 fertilized. When asked later what was the issue, he simply blamed "oh, the trigger was too early!"
After 120+ injections, 2 months of endometriosis flare ups during IVF, his callousness in treating me just as a number or a case was infuriating
Describe the protocols Steven Nakajima used in your cycles at Stanford University and their degree of success.
E2 priming flare protocol
Follistim 300
Menopur 150
Microdose Lupron 20 x 2
I was told, being < 35, my chances of getting good number of embryos were very high. While they extracted 22 mature follicles, I ended up getting only 3 genetically OK embryos. And the only explanation I was given was "it's a head scratcher".
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at Stanford University.
The nursing staff kept rotating and every time I had to re-explain! There is simply no co-ordination. During my egg retrieval surgery, the nurses did not know of my pre-existing condition of endometriosis. The nurses inserted the IV incorrectly which led to anesthesia pooling in my arm, instead of my vein! During recovery, I fainted and gashed my eyebrow in the restroom. When a nurse came to help, she scolded me saying "What am I doing?! Keep your legs straight! etc". If I could, I wouldn't be fainting! Lack of compassion and incompetencies in the training!
Describe your experience with Stanford University.
REI Stanford needs to improve it's processes. They seem to have gotten complacent with the Stanford brand name driving patients to them. During my latest egg retrieval a bunch of things went wrong, leading to a 3 hrs procedure taking 11+ hrs!
1. The nursing team incorrectly hooked up the IV. The IV was first attached to my left hand. When the anesthesiologist tried giving my anesthesia, it went into my arm, instead of vein. Fortunately, a nurse noticed it soon. However by then the anesthesia accumulated and caused my arm to swell, without the anesthesia working. Then they tried my left wrist, but it hit my bone. So finally, they switched to my right arm, where it worked right away. This caused prolonged discomfort in my left arm post surgery as well as explained why it took me 3+ hours to wake up.
Suggestion: They need to train the team better for IV and anesthesia administration.
2. Leaving a patient unattended and/or without a wheelchair during recovery. After waking up, I wanted to use the restroom. Nurse assigned to me left me unattended inside the restroom and without a wheelchair. If I had at least the wheelchair, then I would not have hit my head over the sink, while losing consciousness. The other nurse who came in to help, scolded me, while I was fainting in / out asking things like “What are you doing? Why are you bending your knees? Why can’t you keep your eyes open?” Surely, if I could, I would have done all these - to avoid hitting my face on the sink, which could have had much worse outcomes than a laceration. Not to mention, this turned a 3 hr procedure into a 12 hr procedure end-to-end, while still in pain and anesthesia.
Suggestion: The nurses need to be trained to have better judgement and empathy.
3. Dismissive nurse who seemed to be unaware of my endometriosis history. Context: My history of stage 3 endometriosis and treatment with Dr Nakajima is a long standing one. The Dr knew about it and acknowledged the extra cramping and pain that goes with it. But the nurse was very dismissive of my pain. She kept saying it is “normal and will go away”. Since last time, I was also prescribed antibiotics, I asked if this time I needed the same. She dismissed right away, saying “We give during surgery, not needed later on”. After multiple attempts, she finally went and asked Dr Murphy (?) who confirmed that the endometriomas were not aspirated, so it doesn’t need follow up antibiotics.
Suggestion: Train nurses to do their due diligence in internalizing the patient history while delivering care.
4. Oncall Dr ignored my doctor's recommendation on when to give the trigger shot and incomplete information given to the patient. They ignored Dr Nakajima’s notes on when to trigger - a very crucial decision since it determines the maturity of eggs retrieved and makes taking 60+ injections worth it. My trust relation is with Dr Nakajima, not any other Dr. So, despite Dr Nakajima mentioning in the internal notes that “trigger when most are 20 mm”, I was asked to trigger when USG showed only 2 out of 14 had reached 20 mm. Moreover, I, the patient, was not even informed of this contradiction. Had I known this, I would have requested them to get it reviewed with Dr Nakajima and come to a consensus.
Suggestion: Give patients complete information and context, especially when deviating from their Dr’s treatment suggestions.
5. Inaccurate updates to family waiting outside. When you met my husband and my brother waiting outside, they were told that I was taking more time to wake up because different bodies metabolize anesthesia differently. They were not told about the IV mismanagements and extra anesthesia administration.
Suggestion : Please deliver accurate updates to the caregiver.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Steven Nakajima at Stanford University.
Approx $15,000 per cycle.
Describe Steven Nakajima's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at Stanford University.
N/A
What specific things went wrong at Stanford University?
- Failed to inform you of changes in protocol
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
Review of