02:50 16th February 2014 | Fertility Clinics

Fertility Clinics Infertility Fertility IVF PGD PGS IVF centre

For most couples dealing with infertility, the choice of where to seek for help is confusing. Typically they are alone in their reality with few people they feel confident enough to confide in and are blindsided by the weight of emotions and insecurities that their current reality brings with it. For most people the years go by, without them achieving pregnancy, and they realise that there is a problem. The predominant attitude to infertility in Nigeria is one of shame and helplessness within the background of a culture that places a high premium on childbearing. For those who do seek help; they follow a diverse set of paths ranging from seeking solutions from medical professionals typically family physicians who may refer them to a gynaecologist, to those who look for succour and divine intervention, as well as those who try alternative medicine and herbal remedies. However with increased public health education and enlightenment programmes demystifying infertility, more people today are aware that it is a common problem and they seek help early. The challenge of course remains where to seek help and what couples should look out for when making their choices.
There are certain factors that you might want to consider when choosing a fertility clinic such as: the implementation of a quality management system, experience and track record of the clinic, ethical practise standards and collaboration with international clinics.

Does the clinic have a quality management system?
Everyone seeking infertility treatment will want to ensure they are receiving ‘quality care”. But what exactly is quality, how is it measured and how can you go about comparing quality between different infertility clinics. The concept of quality is one that is often misunderstood and mistaken for “luxury”. Quality in health care addresses the issue of whether your health system is fit for purpose and if the fundamental structures that assure your safety and deliver your desired results have been deployed. Quality as a concept in healthcare can be described using the analogy of the air worthiness of an aircraft flying people of different financial classes, from economy to first class, across continents.

Certification by an international body
Accreditation and subsequent certification is a recognized evaluation process used to assess and improve the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care organizations. It is a way to publically recognise that a health care organisation, in this case an IVF centre, has met the highest quality standards of best practise according to universally defined and tested parameters. Certification of an IVF centre places emphasis on the premise that adherence to evidence-based standards will produce higher quality health care services in an increasingly safe environment thus;

• Provides a framework to create and implement systems and processes that improve operational effectiveness and advance positive patient outcomes
• Mitigates the risk of adverse events
• Sustains improvements in quality and organizational performance
• Promotes the use of ethical frameworks
• Drives compliance with safety standards
• Enhances reliability of laboratory procedures
• Improves patient outcomes
• Encourages Transparency
• Facilitates adaptation to new innovations and technologies in reproductive health

There are a number of internationally recognised standards of certification of fertility clinics, the best of which is the international organisation for standardisation ISO9001:2008 standard, which ensures that the fertility clinic being considered is at par from the point of view of quality with the best in the world and assures you that quality systems have been deployed to meet your needs.

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