[Dr Wendy Schillings has] no bedside manor, which I wouldn't mind so much, but her total lack of communication is really disheartening. After spending a small fortune at her practice, we met with her ONE time and from there never spoke to her again. She doesn't interact with patients in the lobby or hallway and lacks all concern for her patients' setbacks. After our failed fresh transfer I was so appalled that we heard nothing from her directly. We were instructed to make an appointment with her, and when I attempted to do that, she was booked out two months and my frozen cycle would have been starting sooner than a meeting with her.
Strengths: Nursing staff, especially Christine... Weaknesses: Dr. Shillings. She's very unpleasant and a terrible communicator. The other element to this office that may not work for people is that their office is not large enough to accommodate major procedures. Therefore, aside from ultrasounds and IUIs, everything is done at the Basking Ridge, NJ office (about an hour from the RMA of PA office). However, I must say, that office is INCREDIBLE and had I know how amazing they were, I probably would have commuted an hour and just switched to their office completely know
How was your experience with Wendy Schillings at RMA of Pennsylvania?
Strengths: She has some impressive statistics and her protocols ARE somewhat better compared to other clinics I've researched. Her stats on her website are from 2013, however, so it's a little hard to determine what her current rates are based on the increased patient #'s she has.
Weaknesses: No bedside manor, which I wouldn't mind so much, but her total lack of communication is really disheartening. After spending a small fortune at her practice, we met with her ONE time and from there never spoke to her again. She doesn't interact with patients in the lobby or hallway and lacks all concern for her patients' setbacks. After our failed fresh transfer I was so appalled that we heard nothing from her directly. We were instructed to make an appointment with her, and when I attempted to do that, she was booked out two months and my frozen cycle would have been starting sooner than a meeting with her.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Wendy Schillings at RMA of Pennsylvania?
1. Don't ever expect to see or talk to her after your consult.
2. Keep expectations very low for communication from her specifically.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Wendy Schillings at RMA of Pennsylvania?
I was a patient of RMA for three years and met with Wendy ONE time. She deflected us to her nurses or PAs (thankfully, anyway). After our first negative test after IVF we heard nothing from her, and similarly, heard nothing from her after our positive, either. Furthermore, when we saw her in the office lobby, she never said hello. It was as if she didn't even recognize us.
Describe the protocols Wendy Schillings used in your cycles at RMA of Pennsylvania and their degree of success.
I took Clomid before our IUI to produce follicles.
I was on various injectable medications for my IVF cycle including: low dose HCG, Gonal-F, Ganirellix, and triggered with Pregnyl.
For my frozen embryo transfer I was on Estrace (orally) and then Progesterone in oil injections and switched to suppositories of Endometrin after I hit 8 weeks.
Describe your experience with your nurse at RMA of Pennsylvania. (Assigned nurse: Tara Markovich )
My nurse Tara was great. She always answered any questions I had and was very understanding when I wanted to clarification as to why a certain medication was being used, etc. The way the office communicates is a little inconvenient as you have to leave voicemails and call backs don't happen right away. They have their own e-mail system as well, so while you CAN e-mail your nurse from your personal e-mail, their replies go to their own network e-mail and you have to log into that to check the messages, which is very inconvenient, especially from a phone.
I have to say that one of the nurses named Christine was BY FAR the best. She is a true asset to RMA and I would base a recommendation of why someone should go to RMA is because of Christine. Her main job is to take blood in the morning for monitoring, and she is a breath of fresh air in that place. She is SO sweet, welcoming, and kind.
Describe your experience with RMA of Pennsylvania.
Strengths: Nursing staff, especially Christine! The receptionists are also incredibly nice and one of them went above and beyond for me one time and stayed after they closed so I could come and get a form I needed to take to another doctor office.
Weaknesses: Dr. Shillings. She's very unpleasant and a terrible communicator. The other element to this office that may not work for people is that their office is not large enough to accommodate major procedures. Therefore, aside from ultrasounds and IUIs, everything is done at the Basking Ridge, NJ office (about an hour from the RMA of PA office). However, I must say, that office is INCREDIBLE and had I know how amazing they were, I probably would have commuted an hour and just switched to their office completely knowing my retrieval and transfers would have had to be there anyway.
Describe your experience with your monitoring appointments at RMA of Pennsylvania.
This part of RMA runs VERY efficiently. Morning hours are 7 am to 8:30 am. You usually wait in a short line if you're arriving right at 7, sign in at the front desk on a numbered lined and you are taken back for bloodwork or ultrasounds in the order you signed in. Quick and easy. If I signed in first, I could get bloodwork and a ultrasound done by 7:10 am and be out the door to work.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Wendy Schillings at RMA of Pennsylvania.
IUI cycles were $750 each (not including medications)
IVF was $14,500 for one fresh cycle (not including medications)
1 frozen embryo transfer was $3,500 (not including medications)
What specific things went wrong at RMA of Pennsylvania?
- Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy
- Lost paperwork
- Failed to send your chart to another clinic
Describe the specific things that went wrong at RMA of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Shillings referred my husband to a urologist for a male factor issue. They were supposed to send all our of files to that office, and when we got to our appointment (an hour away), the urologist did not have our files. The appointment was wasted because they couldn't do anything for us without having that information, so we needed to reschedule for a month later.
Another time, Dr. Shillings refused to call in a prescription for a medication I needed, so I had to call my OB and ask them to do it. Thankfully they did.
5
Clinic
RMA of Pennsylvania
Allentown