Verified
This patient has provided documentation of treatment at this clinic.
2016 - 2017, Unsuccessful
Review of
Dr. Shen was cold and clinical, which is fine, but frequently gave incorrect information or neglected to tell me details of my treatment all together. Each appoint,met was rushed and short. I often left with more confusion and questions than when I arrived at each appointment due to Dr. Shen's poor communication. She was not receptive to any of my feedback when sharing previous IUI procedures and experiences and was set on her idea of how to proceed with IUI.
Staff [at Kaiser - Fremont] forgot to give me paperwork required for intake. I faxed and emailed them multiple times but the documents were never received. Staff never told me the timing of my HCG trigger injection and never did an injection training with me. They also failed to call my letrozole prescription in to the pharmacy. Staff told me that for my IUI procedure I could bring my sperm (from a bank) with me at the time of my appointment. I asked multiple times and they all confirmed this was true. I got a call four hours prior to my IUI from the clinic demanding that I drive to their office with the sperm immediately because they apparently want to have it prior to the appointment. I had to abruptly leave work and wait at UPS until it arrived, since Kaiser won't accept sperm bank shipments at their offices. This adds to the cost and stress. When I expressed that I was upset with the last minute stress despite asking multiple times in advance to avoid this situation, staff and Dr. Shen shrugged and said that this always happens the first time so now I will know for next time. Also the number of mobile sperm was not shared with me until after the IUI and they were a subpar number. Dr. Shen insisted that Kaiser do the sperm wash rather than purchase pre-washed IUI sperm, and I feel that the lab must have damaged the sample and that this was bad advice. Dr. Shen told me after my IUI that next month when I wanted to come back the procedure will be better - almost as if she expected it to fail, which was extremely disappointing to hear immediately following and IUI. When the IUI was not successful, she only told me that there is a higher chance of it not working so I should not be surprised. She then asked if I wanted to do the same procedure with no changes. When I asked what we could do differently moving forward, she said there is nothing that can be done differently. Needless to say, this was one of my final interactions with this doctor.
How was your experience with Wen-Hui Shen at Kaiser Permanente NorCal?
Dr. Shen was cold and clinical, which is fine, but frequently gave incorrect information or neglected to tell me details of my treatment all together. Each appoint,met was rushed and short. I often left with more confusion and questions than when I arrived at each appointment due to Dr. Shen's poor communication. She was not receptive to any of my feedback when sharing previous IUI procedures and experiences and was set on her idea of how to proceed with IUI.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Wen-Hui Shen at Kaiser Permanente NorCal?
Be prepared to be treated like a number. Be prepared with thorough questions.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Wen-Hui Shen at Kaiser Permanente NorCal?
Dr. Shen did not acknowledge my personal situation or previous diagnosis(es) when telling me my treatment plan. My treatment plan was not a discussion and was not negotiable, and it felt as if she gave the same treatment plan to everyone who works with her. Dr. Shen only referenced statistics of people in my age range rather than specific treatment goals for someone in my unique situation.
Describe the protocols Wen-Hui Shen used in your cycles at Kaiser Permanente NorCal and their degree of success.
I did one IUI using letrozole and HCG trigger shot. Dr. Shen did not explain her rationale for this medication regimen even though I had done this previously without any resulting pregnancy. The IUI I completed with Dr. Shen did not result in a pregnancy or an answer to my years of infertility.
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at Kaiser Permanente NorCal.
Nursing staff were cold and dismissive, similar to Dr. Shen. When Dr. Shen frequently did not communicate steps or instructions in my IUI procedure, they shrugged it off and said that Dr. Shen frequently forgets to tell patients crucial information. I was never able to reach them by phone and at least half of the messages I left were never returned.
Describe your experience with Kaiser Permanente NorCal.
I live in Oakland, so the commute was not ideal for me to Fremont. There is ample parking though so that's good. Staff don't answer phones and I left a message every time I called the office. Staff rarely returned my calls. I was not assigned a nurse or case coordinator so I just had to hope for any of the staff to follow up with me. The lack of communication was abysmal.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Wen-Hui Shen at Kaiser Permanente NorCal.
I did not have insurance coverage for my procedure or medications. My HCG shot was around $150.
Describe Wen-Hui Shen's approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at Kaiser Permanente NorCal.
We did IUI so this is not applicable.
What specific things went wrong at Kaiser Permanente NorCal?
- Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy
- Lost paperwork
- Lost appointments
- Failed to call with results
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
- Lost or damaged samples
Describe the specific things that went wrong at Kaiser Permanente NorCal.
Staff forgot to give me paperwork required for intake. I faxed and emailed them multiple times but the documents were never received. Staff never told me the timing of my HCG trigger injection and never did an injection training with me. They also failed to call my letrozole prescription in to the pharmacy. Staff told me that for my IUI procedure I could bring my sperm (from a bank) with me at the time of my appointment. I asked multiple times and they all confirmed this was true. I got a call four hours prior to my IUI from the clinic demanding that I drive to their office with the sperm immediately because they apparently want to have it prior to the appointment. I had to abruptly leave work and wait at UPS until it arrived, since Kaiser won't accept sperm bank shipments at their offices. This adds to the cost and stress. When I expressed that I was upset with the last minute stress despite asking multiple times in advance to avoid this situation, staff and Dr. Shen shrugged and said that this always happens the first time so now I will know for next time. Also the number of mobile sperm was not shared with me until after the IUI and they were a subpar number. Dr. Shen insisted that Kaiser do the sperm wash rather than purchase pre-washed IUI sperm, and I feel that the lab must have damaged the sample and that this was bad advice. Dr. Shen told me after my IUI that next month when I wanted to come back the procedure will be better - almost as if she expected it to fail, which was extremely disappointing to hear immediately following and IUI. When the IUI was not successful, she only told me that there is a higher chance of it not working so I should not be surprised. She then asked if I wanted to do the same procedure with no changes. When I asked what we could do differently moving forward, she said there is nothing that can be done differently. Needless to say, this was one of my final interactions with this doctor.
Review of