IVF methods, success rates improving – Experts
Fertility specialists and stakeholders have urged couples battling with infertility to avoid patronizing quacks, saying infertility as classified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) is a public health disease requiring proper medical attention from qualified personnel at accredited facilities. The experts spoke at the weekend during a public enlightenment programme tagged, “The Fertility Forum” organised […]
Fertility specialists and stakeholders have urged couples battling with infertility to avoid patronizing quacks, saying infertility as classified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) is a public health disease requiring proper medical attention from qualified personnel at accredited facilities.
The experts spoke at the weekend during a public enlightenment programme tagged, “The Fertility Forum” organised by the Association for Fertility and Reproductive Health (AFRH) with theme, ‘Fertility Treatment – Fact not Fiction’.
The forum was a corporate social responsibility of AFRH to create awareness in the general public about IVF and fertility treatments with patients, intending patients, religious groups, counsellors, support groups, among others.
It was an opportunity for couples with fertility challenge to speak up on the difficulty with accessing IVF treatment and getting the best treatment.
The Vice-President of AFRH, Dr Preye Fiebai, while responding to concerns raised by a woman who complained that she had carried out IVF treatment three times in different facilities without success, explained that the fact that a patient has failed three times did not mean the patient should not try again.
He added that IVF, or artificial insemination, is a process of fertilisation where an egg is combined with sperm outside the body, in vitro.
He said AFRH had partnered with the Lagos State Government to accredit and regulate activities of fertility clinics in the state, revealing that the monitoring is being carried out by the Health Facility Management Agency (HEFAMA) to reduce quackery in the practice of IVF and fertility treatment.
A consultant obstetrician/gynaecologist and fertility specialist with George’s Memorial Medical Centre in Lagos, Dr Faye Iketubosin, also noted that the major problem that infertile couples have is lack of access to proper treatment and lack of access to knowledge about their condition.
He said the association was concerned about the plethora of cases where infertile couples fall victims of quackery.
“In this country, we have had an explosion of fertility practitioners, both orthodox and unorthodox, recognized or unrecognized and there are a lot of myths that go with infertility. This has been there forever.
“What we want to do is to give information on what causes infertility, what you should do, when you should act and also to hear from the public. It gives them opportunity to ask questions about their experiences or concerns,” he said.
Also speaking, another fertility specialist, Dr. Lateef Akinola, said patients must perish the myths about infertility and focus on accessing treatment to overcome their challenge.