Is It Right for IVF Patients to Make Complaints Against Their Doctor when their cycle fails ?

All doctors wish to see their patients get better. Rightly so, because helping and healing others is one of main motivations for someone to become a doctor in the first place. Doctors have chosen a profession which is the pinnacle of service provision. Doctors have a direct personal relationship with their patients. The best doctors invest plenty of time and energy for their patients’ happiness.

Even business-wise this is the right thing to do. Satisfied patients offer good reviews about the doctor, which become attractants for new patients.  Doctors are well aware of this strategy which is the best form of marketing for the medical profession. Therefore, if the patients are happy , so are their doctors.

Sadly, not all patients respond well to IVF treatment. Sometimes medication may not work or the body may not respond properly to treatment. In IVF treatment, a major chunk of the outcome is beyond the doctor’s control. Even the best doctor can only make the embryos in the IVF lab and then transfer them into the uterus. What happens thereafter is out of the doctor’s hands. Unfortunately, a major portion of embryos do not become babies. It implies that the chances for the success of a single IVF cycle are less than the chances for failure.

This harsh truth is irrefutable. So we put in our best efforts at educating our patients at Malpani Clinic and preparing them for all eventualities.  We are frank with our patients and show patients photographs of their embryos even when the odds are not in their favor. We encourage patients to get as well informed as possible , so that they may expect realistic results out of our efforts.

Patients are visibly depressed when an IVF cycle fails, and even though they may appreciate our sincere endeavor. . When an IVF cycle fails, rather than complain, a smart patient must analyze the failed cycle with their doctor. 

Need help in analysing your failed IVF cycle ? Please send me your medical details by filling in the form at www.drmalpani.com/malpaniform.htm so that I can guide you better !

Dr. Malpani Addresses Patients’ Complaints

Malpani Clinic puts in its best efforts to provide high quality medical care to all patients. However, there are still several unhappy patients who have many complaints about us. We strive to address these complaints the best way we can. There are mostly three kinds of complaints about Malpani Clinic.

Firstly, patients feel that the services offered by Malpani Clinic are way too costly. Expensiveness, as a parameter is hard to measure. Compared to other IVF clinics in India, Malpani Clinic is indeed costlier. However, reviews of the costs of the IVF clinics in the UK and the USA make it clear that the rates offered at Malpani Clinic are significantly more affordable. This rate is justified by our higher rates of success with IVF and a more personalized care when pitted against other IVF clinics. Patients usually shirk from spending a lot on medical care. Thus, when they go for IVF treatment, the prices come to them as a shock. But Malpani Clinic has published all the rates in the website and we are quite straightforward about our costs. Patients who have this information before approaching us have no reasons for surprise and therefore no reasons for complaints.

Secondly, patients are disgruntled that I am too frank and honest with them which hurts their feelings. This is true again as I don’t believe that I should cheat patients with pleasant sounding words when the truth is that they have a bad prognosis. I explain things to them as honestly as I can. Telling patients what they want to hear instead of what is the truth serves no practical purpose. It only fosters false hopes in the patient’s mind. Learning about the truth as soon as possible, helps them find a solution for their problems in time. 

Read more about the third complaint about Dr. Malpani at http://blog.drmalpani.com/2012/10/patient-complaints-about-dr-malpani.html

The Cost Factor in IVF Treatment

There are many infertile patients who with proper IVF treatment could get pregnant. Sadly, their financial status does not permit them to afford an IVF treatment which is quite expensive. Thus, they are left childless. The degree of emotional trauma for these patients is unimaginable. Knowing full well that they can conceive with IVF treatment but are unable to afford it is a very heartbreaking and frustrating reality for them.

Not just patients, IVF specialists too feel upset about this. IVF specialists know that they can medically solve this patient’s problem but just because the patient cannot pay for it, they are anguished that they cannot offer them this treatment. This is a phenomenon that is prevalent not only in India but across the world. It is therefore, of utmost priority that we find ways and means to make IVF treatment more affordable.

If the government took pains to help infertile couples achieve their desired family size , instead of only helping couples with too many children to limit it, this would make a huge difference to infertile couples. This could be implemented in the form of inexpensive and cost effective IVF programs in medical colleges and government hospitals. Considering the huge turnover of M. D. gynecologists churned out by medical colleges in India, it is surprising that they have never had any exposure to IVF treatment. It is sad that these gynecologists are under qualified and that we haven’t  implemented any changes in this scenario yet. Running IVF treatment schemes in government hospitals would not only allow gynecologists to obtain adequate hands-on experience in IVF treatment, it would also ensure quality medical services for infertile couples who cannot afford expensive private IVF clinics. 

Want to explore less expensive alternatives to IVF ? Please send me your medical details by filling in the form at www.drmalpani.com/malpaniform.htm so that I can guide you better !

When IVF doctors err

Being human, it is inevitable that IVF doctors also make mistakes. I made a mistake too, not long back. While consulting a new patient at Malpani Clinic recently, I accidentally put down her age as 41 instead of 31. The problem was that owing to my miscalculation, I had put her in a category beyond the crucial age of 35. Since, age is a major determinant for infertility treatment, I advised her to consider IVF treatment.

At the end of the consultation. I have the habit of making reviews of my own advice and records with my patients to ensure that they have completely understood what I have to say. With this patient, I started off by saying, “Given the fact that you are 41, I think you need IVF”. I was interrupted by her with the embarrassing revelation that her age was only 31 and not 41! I was highly mortified with this very basic mistake of mine , and I quickly apologized. I made corrections and consulted her afresh after reviewing my advice. Needless to say, the patient was visibly upset with this episode and very understandably so. For someone who wasn’t that weak in making simple mathematical calculations, it was a shameful mistake. The patient might very well have felt that an error in doing something as simple as calculating her age could reflect my incompetence as a doctor.  She might even speculate as to what other mistakes I might make in the future. Chances are, she might decide against coming to me for treatment.

Then again, when I encounter mistakes made by other professionals, I am open towards viewing things from a more lenient perspective. I am willing to be forgiving of them because I have made y own share of errors. 

Do you think your IVF doctor has erred in your treatment ? Please send me your medical details by filling in the form at www.drmalpani.com/malpaniform.htm so that I can guide you better !

How to make sense of your IVF doctor’s advice

Infertility specialists are sought after by patients for their tremendous technical expertise. Infertility doctors master technical skills like egg collections and embryo transfers over several years in medical school. Our patients at Malpani Fertility Clinic have come to us not only for our technical prowess but also for our professional opinion. Rightly so, as medical professionals like infertility specialists can properly suggest possible treatment options and advise them on their best course of action.

Although a significant number do expect guidance from the doctor, this is not true of all infertile couples. These couples have a course of action in mind and simply want the doctor to implement their plan as a technician. They want the doctor to carry out assisted reproductive procedures for them in the laboratory as they cannot do it themselves in their own bedroom. For their purpose, a doctor is merely a trained technician than a professional.

Because they know their own minds, this makes them an easy group of patients to deal with , as they do not require much counseling. For them the IVF clinic simply has to carry out their treatment plan. Older women with poor ovarian reserve comprise many of these patients. They are unwilling to consider egg donation or adoption and therefore want the doctor to perform IVF for them, even while knowing fully well that with their depleted ovarian reserve, their chances for success are pretty low. http://blog.drmalpani.com/2012/12/should-patients-follow-their-doctors.html