Sunday, December 19, 2004
IVF Books and a shout out to all you gals that don't live in New York City
When I was making the decision whether to proceed with IVF or not, I relied on my doctor's information, my gut instincts, info from internet blogs/ BBs, pubmed, and my husband's and mother's thoughts. I had never thought about reading about it from a book. That is so funny considering I am a bookworm and descend from librarian parents. I think I just assumed that there wasn't anything up to date anymore in the book world, especially on something this cutting edge. I was at the public library and found one on the New book shelf, "The Infertility Survival Handbook," by Elizabeth Swire Falker. It was published in 2004. Now, in retrospecting reading it, it helps me put it all together, kind of like when I write this blog. I am mainly an introvert when it comes to processing information, that is, it takes a while for it all to sink in and compute. I think it is a very comprehensive book and even goes into heavy medical detail, even from my former medical student point of view. Hers is a compelling story, but she is very detailed and objective in her explanations (she is a former lawyer). Most of her information is based on her experiences at Cornell University in New York and I don't agree completely with some of her advice on where to find the BEST reproductive endocrinologist.
I will say that part of the reason I did my blog, is that I live in a small city (actually in a RED state), not in a large metropolitan area and wanted those who are remote like me not to be discouraged. I think the smallness of my clinic really provided personal service and my physcian (recent transplant of a large metropolitan area) really combined the best of both worlds (academic center know how with small clinic comforts). I have worked in a few large academic institutions and I will say they do have some of the most cutting edge thinking and research, but often are very inefficient and inconsistent in the patient care they provide. Also, academic faculty (and I used to be one of them) have very liberal vacation times and traveling schedules (conferences, meetings, etc) that may limit their practice and accessibility. Also bad staff are hard to fire.
So, my advice is to find a RE that you trust their credentials, like their bedside manner, have plesant staff, and good track record, and discuss enough with you to satisfy your brain. I will say one of the best things about the clnic I used was they never left news of results on my answering machine. They always spoke with me or left a number for me to call them back. I have noticed on a few blogs that people got their beta results on an answering machine/ voice mail. I think that is just awful and could be a violation of HIPPA.
I will say that part of the reason I did my blog, is that I live in a small city (actually in a RED state), not in a large metropolitan area and wanted those who are remote like me not to be discouraged. I think the smallness of my clinic really provided personal service and my physcian (recent transplant of a large metropolitan area) really combined the best of both worlds (academic center know how with small clinic comforts). I have worked in a few large academic institutions and I will say they do have some of the most cutting edge thinking and research, but often are very inefficient and inconsistent in the patient care they provide. Also, academic faculty (and I used to be one of them) have very liberal vacation times and traveling schedules (conferences, meetings, etc) that may limit their practice and accessibility. Also bad staff are hard to fire.
So, my advice is to find a RE that you trust their credentials, like their bedside manner, have plesant staff, and good track record, and discuss enough with you to satisfy your brain. I will say one of the best things about the clnic I used was they never left news of results on my answering machine. They always spoke with me or left a number for me to call them back. I have noticed on a few blogs that people got their beta results on an answering machine/ voice mail. I think that is just awful and could be a violation of HIPPA.
