Verified
This patient has provided documentation of treatment at this clinic.
2018 - 2019, Unsuccessful
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Upon meeting Dr. Dodds, he quickly explained to me that I had two options due to my age (39y.o.) ... He would have kept running the same thing over and over, even though we got no better results each time. ... No pregnancies resulted from all 4 IUIs I had done. ... He in no way was interested in discovering why we are unable to conceive. ...
Weaknesses: staff [The Fertility Ctr of MI] is not friendly, or welcoming. You are shuffled room to room for procedures and consults. No continuity in staff throughout a week let alone a cycle. ... It was obvious I had been crying. The staff checking me out, starting asking me about my bill, and a discrepancy with my insurance. ... It was a frustrating, confusing, stressful, and impersonal experience with the staff overall.
How was your experience with William Dodds (retired) at The Fertility Center of Michigan?
Upon meeting Dr. Dodds, he quickly explained to me that I had two options due to my age (39y.o.): 1) The "European method". He explained this as "...if you want a baby ASAP, I can get you one using IVF. I call it the European method because it's cheaper and used more often in Europe. It's like the deluxe package". Or we could go the 2). Conservative route. Which would be try more medicated cycles and then IUIs and see what we could get to happen. But that we had maybe a 15-30% chance of ever conceiving this way. I was, and still am, diagnosed as Unexplained Infertility. I do not have PCOS, endometriosis, or diminished ovarian reserve, I ovulate regularly, am healthy, and all tests have come back in good range. I believe the only reason he said IVF was my best option is my age. He in no way was interested in discovering why we are unable to conceive. At one time he used the phrase "Well it's a good thing that's how the good Lord made you!" when discussing female reproductive anatomy. He commented on how "great" my husband's sperm analysis was several times. He called him an "overachiever". I left feeling hopeless, pressured to spend anywhere from $10-25,000 for IVF with them, and that my body was a complete failure. I never met with him in person again. I went through 4 IUI cycles in which he supposedly read the monitoring reports and made recommendations. It took me changing Drs to get a new protocol. He would have kept running the same thing over and over, even though we got no better results each time.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of William Dodds (retired) at The Fertility Center of Michigan?
Go in confident. Do not let him pressure you to make decisions. Ask questions, and ask them again. Ask that you see him in person once in awhile to check in. Ask if he personally is monitoring your cycle. I doubt he will, but I wish I had demanded it more.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with William Dodds (retired) at The Fertility Center of Michigan?
The entire office is impersonal, and you can see a different nurse, tech, or doctor each time. There is little to no consistency nor connection with your primary doctor. You are called through the same process each visit and can see others doing the same. I felt like cattle being processed for ultrasounds and IUIs. I was rarely referred to by name. Doctors who had performed IUIs on me, did not remember me from cycle to cycle. I once walked into the wrong consult room (down a long hallway, all doors look the same) and Dr. Dodds welcomed me in and asked me to sit down. He was in fact waiting for a different patient. He was not my Dr. that day, didn't recognize me, (note: he is considered my PRIMARY Dr. and has met me in-person) nor, apparently, the patient he was supposed to be waiting for. I excused myself and went to the Dr. I was seeing that day.
Describe the protocols William Dodds (retired) used in your cycles at The Fertility Center of Michigan and their degree of success.
My first medicated cycle, he had me do 100mg of Clomid days 3-7. I produced 6-8 mature follicles. They recommended we switch to timed intercourse rather than IUI to avoid multiples. Then, I used 50 and 100 mg of Clomid days 3-7 (alternating days), with transvaginal monitoring on Day 1, and then closer to ovulation. We hoped to get 3-5 follicles of good size. I produced these each time, with some of them getting to a very large size---38mm was my largest. Ovidril was used to trigger ovulation and IUI was performed around 24-36 hrs later. I used progesterone the day following and for the next 14 days. I was not told that progesterone could stop my period from coming and I needed to stop after a negative test in order to allow myself to bleed. This lead to quite a bit of disappointment and heartache right off the bat. By the time we came to IUI #3, my lining was severely thinning due to the Clomid. I then started using estradiol to help build my lining. No pregnancies resulted from all 4 IUIs I had done.
Describe your experience with the nursing staff at The Fertility Center of Michigan.
A new person every time. The ultrasound techs were aloof and impersonal. They seemed upset to be there. The nursing staff would make recommendations or changes in the protocol which were in direct contradiction to the original protocol. I never felt confident when they told me to change the protocol b/c they did not seem sure or confident when I questioned why we were changing. It was a frustrating, confusing, stressful, and impersonal experience with the staff overall.
Describe your experience with The Fertility Center of Michigan.
Weaknesses: staff is not friendly, or welcoming. You are shuffled room to room for procedures and consults. No continuity in staff throughout a week let alone a cycle. I was crying with frustration in a consultation room once. I go myself back together and went to check out. It was obvious I had been crying. The staff checking me out, starting asking me about my bill, and a discrepancy with my insurance. I had fulfilled my deductible. She continued to ask for payment for services that were coming back as "going to deductible". I understand business, and this is one, but I was very obviously upset and it was not an appropriate time to ask for these things. This is still a very emotional journey.
Describe the costs associated with your care under William Dodds (retired) at The Fertility Center of Michigan.
With medications, consults, 4 IUIs, etc. about $7,000. A 10 min conversation with the Dr following my ultrasound would cost me about $150 each time. Ultrasound: $120 ea. IUI: $1200 +.
Describe William Dodds (retired)'s approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at The Fertility Center of Michigan.
N/A
What specific things went wrong at The Fertility Center of Michigan?
- Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy
- Failed to call with results
- Failed to order appropriate test
- Failed to inform you of changes in protocol
- Provided conflicting information
- Failed to convey critical information
Describe the specific things that went wrong at The Fertility Center of Michigan.
Among many other things: I had to call in for over a week to get them to call my specialty pharmacy for a prescription that was time-sensitive. I finally left a pleading message which led them to call. I was left at the blood lab at 8 in the morning without my stat lab order being called in in the appropriate time. I had to call repeatedly for 30 min to get them to call the order in so that I could get my blood drawn, get the recommendation for the injectible meds that afternoon, and get to work on time. I had to call off and on for 2 1/2 weeks to get my records sent to my new choice in fertility clinic (CNY Fertility; $3900 IVF. They are also groundbreaking and amazing) ahead of my consult (I requested this 1 1/2 months in advance). I hope to never have to utilize them ever again. Ever.