Shady Grove Fertility Colorado (US Fertility Network clinic)

Dr. Harris has treated my husband and I with the utmost understanding and respect. We’re still early on in our infertility journey, but she has been very thorough in her investigation into the causes of my miscarriages and infertility, including identifying a potential autoimmune disorder through extra blood work that other medical professionals did not.

I’m not sure.

She ruled out every other potential underlying cause, and then we moved on to medicated cycles. She listened to my concerns about my husband going out of town for an extended period of time and helped adjust our plan to use a frozen sperm sample and IUI until he’s back.

So far we’ve spent about 1,750 on freezing a sleep sample and one cycle of IUI.

NA

Dr Murray always gave us our options and was clear about expectations. When we found out I had diminished ovarian reserve, she asked us what we wanted more. A baby or a baby that was genetically mine. I appreciated the honest response. When our first IVF donor cycle only resulted with me pregnant with one baby and no frozen embryos she kindly told us if we wanted more children we should go forward with another donor. We now have 3 boys and currently pregnant with a girl and we are donating our remaining boy embryo to another family.

Double check and triple check insurance coverage and get it in writing. Billing has been a hassle this time around.

Donor egg

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She always guided us on what was safest for me and the potential baby or babies

Dr. Harris was fantastic. She was thorough from the beginning, ensuring we knew our options and the details for them. Throughout the time she checked in with us, did an ultrasound here and there and always reviewed everything.

Come ready to get pregnant!

We did 2 rounds of IUI. We did monitored cycles with Letrozole and a trigger shot. I was also give progesterone after the IUI.

They have an IUI package that covers all visits during that time. We paid this 2x with our 2 IUIs.

Dr. Murray is extremely detail-oriented and results oriented. She is very personally invested in her patients' success. She is very thorough in her analysis and in her communication. She practices evidence-based medicine and always communicates up-to-date research. She is honest and realistic and will not sugar coat expectations, but is also very determined to get you the results you desire. She is so dedicated to her practice that she once called me on a Sunday night to discuss my treatment plan. She never left a question unanswered and often personally called me to discuss treatment options and results. She never once made me feel like I was asking silly questions. She was truly and genuinely happy and excited when we saw the heartbeat on our first ultrasound after transfer.

Trust her.

Due to age and PCOS, she put me on CoQ10 for many months prior to egg retrieval. For the egg retrieval, she put me on both Gonal-F and Menopur, starting at lower doses (to not overstimulate at the expense of egg quality) and then adjusted the doses as the cycle proceeded based on ultrasound results. This egg retrieval was my most successful one (I had 3 prior retrievals with another clinic). We did PGS testing, which resulted in 3 euploid embryos, which is great for my age. Prior to embryo transfer, Dr. Murray put me on Vitamin E and Pentoxifylline to help with uterine lining preparation. During the transfer cycle, she used Estradiol patches, PIO and vaginal probiotics. She also used an immune protocol using anticoagulant, prednisone, Pepcid and Claritin. Transfer was scheduled based on prior ERA results. The transfer was successful (this was my first retrieval and transfer with Dr. Murray). At this time, I am almost halfway through pregnancy!

We enrolled in the Multi-Cycle Discount program, which was around $29,000

Since we did PGT-A testing, a single euploid embryo was transferred, as is standard.

Dr. Murray was clear and compassionate. She explored avenues other doctors had dismissed (sperm fragmentation and testing products of conception after miscarriage to determine if I was miscarrying genetically normal embryos, in which case IVF would not be a solution), as well as revisiting some that hadn't been tested in awhile (RPL). She was frank about treatments she did not think would have value and explained her reasoning clearly, but she also showed a great deal of compassion and empathy for the losses we had been through. We developed a plan that felt a little scary, but she made sure I had what I needed and was considerate of my feelings throughout. She did not suggest jumping back into more expensive treatment (IVF, donor eggs) until she felt we had a better understanding of what might be going on. I really appreciated her willingness to try to better understand the situation before advising further treatment.

I loved Dr. Murray's manner--she answered our questions and made clear what her reasoning was. Bring your questions, she will answer them. She is a direct communicator, which I prefer, but she is not at all gruff and speaks with care and compassion. If you need someone to be more of a sugar-coater or a cheerleader and tell you things will be okay when they may not be, then you may want a different provider.

We first decided to repeat my RPL panel, test my TSH (I'm on levothyroxine for hypothyroidism), and do a sperm fragmentation test on my husband to rule out possible causes of miscarriage. We then decided we would try to conceive on our own and test the products of conception when I miscarried. I was given a miscarriage kit for this purpose and explained how to use it and what we might expect (results are not guaranteed). Prior to this cycle, I had miscarried our one genetically tested embryo after egg retrieval and FET at another clinic. Because we had been able to conceive on our own and because of this miscarriage, we decided on this test to know if I was miscarrying genetically normal embryos before proceeding to further treatment, as IVF/donor eggs would not be successful if so. However, I actually have stayed pregnant and graduated from the fertility clinic last week, and I have my first appointment with my OB today at 9 weeks 4 days. My previous miscarriages occurred at 6 weeks, 8 weeks, and 9 weeks, so I am cautiously optimistic that this baby will stay.

She listened to us, she was informative and always had a plan of action. She truly had a plan and a back up one every step. She listened to our concerns along the way. Truly she was great. We started seeing her and were scared and unsure what to expect, she told us all the possibilities and told us all the different success rates. She let us make the decisions along the way but you knowledge truly helps make an informed decision.

Go in open minded, but at the same time know that she will truly look at all your information and make the best plan she can. She understands this isn’t easy, but she give you true hope.

We went in not know what to expect, we heard about IUI and knew about IVF and were thinking let’s start with IUI. Dr. Murray gave us the different percentages of success rates and with our age we decided on IVF would be a better option due to age and success rate. We started with birth control to base line. After which we started stimulation the shots were scary at first but we got over that. She monitored everything very closely before we pulled the trigger for retrieval. Once we did retrieval we did PGT-A testing and so we knew we were doing a FET. We ended up only having one egg for transfer. We decided to try it, so we set a date and started hormone treatment for that. I can say we had a successful transfer and are currently expecting our tough strong embryo baby!

We were able to go under our insurance

Dr. Harris always has a smile on her face. She always made me feel safe and comfortable when I’m in the office. She made sure my husband and i understood the process and was always honest with us with the possibility of a negative outcome. She remained hopeful and gave us a sense of hope and confidence in the treatments we went with.

Listen to her and trust her. She was able to answer my questions before i asked them. She knows what she’s talking about.

All of my treatments were covered fully by my insurance

I have an the unfortunate and rare issue of recurrent pregnancy loss. Before I started treatment with Dr. Santoro, I had been through three OB's, 1 other fertility clinic where I was mostly forgotten in the sea of patients, and 6 miscarriages. The one thing that concerns me with my problem is the hesitancy of doctors to work with it. I didn't feel this way once I started working with Dr. Santoro, she actually took the time to read through all my pregnancy losses, give her honest opinion and suggestions, and most importantly do all of that with a great deal of empathy and compassion. She wasn't just rolling me through a standard protocol like previous doctors. She takes the time to analyze and be open to my concerns and limit the amount of pain I might experience along the way. Even though my issue makes it hard to have success, our first treatment with Dr. Santoro still yielded better results than all my previous pregnancies, and I was able to make it much further. I look forward to continuing treatment and am remaining hopeful and satisfied with my care.

Be thorough in your history

Dr. Santoro suggested IVF PGT, which I was hesitant to jump to for a variety of reasons, so we started with IUI per my request. She explained all the risks and benefits and listened to my concerns. I was out on PIO, Lovenox for RPL, and baby aspirin. Result: I made it further this pregnancy, but miscarried, but with better growth rate than past times.

I connected with Dr. Roeca because she is very educational in her approach. She explains things in language I can understand, and includes risk factors. I felt like I could be completely honest with her without hesitation. I feel like she genuinely cares for me.

She is direct, which might throw you off at first, but she genuinely cares about you and she is very compassionate.

We tried IUI first because signs pointed to the fact that it might work. Plus it was covered by our insurance. We tried clomid but it worked “too well” so we then used letrozole which gave us a better outcome for follicle growth. The IUI didn’t end up working so we chatted and decided on IVF. Now we’re through our first cycle and waiting to hear about our embryos.

IUI was mostly covered by insurance - we payed a total of ~$300 per cycle (we did 3). Not all testing was included in insurance so we paid out of pocket for the SIS, genetic testing, and a few more. When we decided on IVF, we enrolled in their shared risk program where the price depends on your age.

She does single but I’m not sure reasoning.

The experience was great. Everything went exactly as Dr. Polotsky had described and predicted. He was very open about the process and what to expect next. He went over results with us, called with updates, and he answered all of our questions. Plus, he was so laidback during the procedures that it made them a lot less anxiety ridden.

Definitely do it and listen to his advice.

After the initial testing, he went over the results with us. My husband had low sperm count and motility. Dr. Polotsky recommended doing IVF vs. IUI. We did an egg retrieval, we did the PGT-A testing, and then did an FET of 1 embryo about 2-3 weeks after the testing. Everything went exactly as planned and we were successful on the first attempt.

Out of pocket, we paid $30,000 for the shared risk program (up to 6 cycles), plus the cost of medication (approx. $5,000), and the cost of the PGT-A testing (I think $1,250). Very little was covered by our insurance, outside of the initial consultation and some medications.

I don’t recall getting an option to transfer more than 1 embryo. We only wanted 1 baby (having twins would NOT have been ideal for us) and he only transferred 1 embryo.

Dr. Polotsky has a very specific personality- he's warm and funny and admits when his suggestions are based more on clinical experience than on science (as with having me stay on meds 2 extra weeks because I had a subchorionic hemorrhage). I enjoyed his jocular bedside manner, but it might not be to everyone's taste. Of course, the important thing is that we got results!

Be prepared for his slightly oddball manner!

We did only donor embryo transfer cycles with Dr. Polotsky (no retrievals), as well as a hysteroscopy to remove a polyp that turned up. We used fully programmed cycles although he was open to trying a natural one. He prefers estrogen in patch form and a PIO-only regimen. Dr. Polotsky and SGF do not routinely use antibiotics or steroids for transfers, which I appreciate.

SGF has fairly reasonable costs for embryo donation, but my insurance covered it. I think there was a $1500 non-billable charge. Another wrinkle is that the Colorado system can't talk to the East Coast and I sometimes had to pay up front.

For the donor embryo program, I believe 1 is always the standard.

Although Dr. Polotsky was out of town during our FET, he checked in before and after and was always accessible to us. He has this demeanor which is calming yet authoritative in a way that makes you feel held and supported. He's also so calm and matter of fact it helps you to relax and trust him in a way we didn't our previous doctor. He is also always willing to take time to hear your concerns and answer your questions no matter how silly you may think they are.

He's got you. He'll take care of you.

Modified natural FET cycle

IVF Shared Risk, medications, acupuncture, surgical procedures

Coming from previous doctors that were not warm, encouraging and sometimes didn't even remember who I was, Dr. Polotsky was a breath of fresh air. He was upbeat, positive and made me feel good about the process. He was a good listener and didn't rush through our meeting time always giving me the opportunity to ask questions. He seemed to be realistic about my situation and I appreciated his delivery and honesty throughout the process.

He is willing to go through as much as you want to know so take advantage of that. I feel like as long as you are open and honest with him, he will be in return with a dash of humor.

Luckily, I had insurance coverage so a lot of my care and medicine was billed through insurance (until I hit my OOP max) except for embryo storage (700+ year), genetic testing (800ish). I cannot remember any other additional costs at the moment. Compared to my previous clinic, this one did not have unbillable to insurance gratuitous fees and costs (like "coordination care") associated with procedures.

I only wanted to transfer one embryo and I believe that was Dr. Polotsky's recommendation as well.

He was great at listening to our concerns. We felt like all our doctors looked at us individually and they consulted other specialists when considering the best course of action for us. He was good at keeping us as relaxed as we could be during all this.

Write everything down

Very calm atmosphere

We did the shared risk program offered so the expenses were higher than if we had done everything a la carte. However, the peace of mind of knowing we got our money back if it didn’t work was worth it.

This clinic strongly prefers single embryo transfer as they know the risks of a multiple pregnancy on a mother.